The Game of Love
by 1432
Summary: Holding on isn't what makes one strong... sometimes its letting go." Ash has reached the point in his life where it comes to his own happiness with the one he loves or her happiness with another. AAMRN. [complete]
1. Chapter 1

**The Game of Love**  
_Romance/Drama-PG13  
Summary: _"_Holding on isn't what makes one strong... sometimes its letting go_."_ Ash has reached the point in his life where it comes to his own happiness with the one he loves or her happiness with another. AAMRN. =)_

_A/N: Hey, everyone.__  I know I haven't been here for a while but 8 weeks of summer vacation without a computer, starting high school, and a serious case of writer's block can do that to you, lol ;)  This is my second muti-chaptered story I'll be posting on here.  I have been working on it for quite a while and I hope everyone like it.  Sorry if the first chapter sounds a little choppy and short but I originally had chapters 1 and 2 combined but I thought it would be too long so I broke it up.  Please enjoy =)  
  
Ash/Misty-24.Brock-26._  
  
--  
**Chapter 1  
  
**"_No one can tell you what love is, you will feel it when you feel nothing else_."**  
**  
--  
A particularly strong gust of wind blew throughout the city of Cerulean, rusting the trees, blowing papers taped to windows on shops, and causing pedestrians to hold onto their hats and pull their coats tighter around them. It was an obvious sign of evidence that the pleasantly warm summer which had been taking place had come to an end to make way for the autumn that was rapidly approaching.   
  
The city was very alert at this specific time. The interlude between seasons caused a sudden switch of relaxation and busy life for the civilians. The summer was the time where each resident took time off from work or classes and spent most of their days sleeping or tanning. But then when the fall came the chaos was unavoidable. The school year began and the holiday from work ended, creating a sharp contrast from their easy lives which had been occurring just weeks before and making everything much more hectic in the process. This time was one of great stress for those who it involved but for the onlookers who were not directly affected it actually a great source of amusement.  
  
This was exactly the case for Grand Master Ash Ketchum who snickered as he witnessed a young girl carrying an armload of school supplies across the street while her mother berated her. He leaned back on the metal railing which surrounded the outdoor cafe that he was waiting in front of, smoothing a hand through his ebony hair has he did so. Sure, Ash was a part of the whole 'back-to-routine' extravaganza, as he liked to call it. Being the Grand Master, a title which he did acquire at seventeen, was not an easy job. But do to the fact that Ash had worked over the summer, spacing out the time he put into his career, made this whole transformation from summer to fall easier on him considering that he was just following the same thing he did every day despite what season it was.  
  
Ash rolled his eyes as a man, clad in a suit and carrying a briefcase, walked passed him, talking loudly into his cell phone about the 'Newman File' or whatever. He hated people like that, the workaholics who screamed into their phones in the middle of the street creating a perfect image to any onlookers. He had rarely come across any of those serious suit-wearing businessmen back in his hometown of Pallet. People like that were much more common in the city, especially one as urban and busy as Cerulean. Most people would wonder why he chose to work at the League's location in Cerulean of all places when he could have a much more relaxed career at its office in Pallet. Ash knew the reason, although, he would never dare speak it aloud to anyone who asked. Despite the fact that Cerulean could be loud and annoying compared to the calm and content Pallet, he had no choice but to reside here. Because, it was in this very atmosphere that the object of his desire was.  
  
On that note and as if on cue, the object of Ash's desire stepped out of the cab in front of him, much to his dismay and slight amusement, shouting into her cell phone as she distractedly paid the taxi driver.  
  
"Lily! It's honestly not that hard of a thing to do. You look at the menu they offer you and make a decision based on what they give you. Anyone who is not in a coma can do it."  
  
Misty Waterflower moved her bag back up to her shoulder and tried to concentrate on balancing her phone between the crook of her neck and shoulder while she yelled sarcastic remarks at her sister who was acting stupider than usual at the moment. She let another annoyed sigh escape her lips as she listened to her sister's response, oblivious to the fact that Ash was watching her with a glint of amusement as well as enchantment in his eyes.  
  
"I already told you I don't care what you pick, I'll eat anything, it has to be something the guests will like," Misty explained for the millionth time. She waited a moment for Lily to answer and then opened her own mouth to speak. "I don't care if your manicure is chipping! Just pick a meal and call back the caterer, okay? Bye." Misty slammed the cover to her cell phone shut, ending the call. "God," she muttered to herself in frustration. She put her phone in her bag and removed her sunglasses which had been hiding her beautiful eyes. After putting them in there too, she looked up to meet the smirking expression of her best friend of fourteen years.  
  
"Things a little stressful, Myst?" Ash asked with his trademark lopsided grin, adding humor into his plainly obvious question hoping it would result in angering her further.  
  
Ash succeeded in doing so as Misty averted her annoyed expression in his direction, he grinned sheepishly as a result. A loud groan escaped Misty's lips, therefore, ending their silent banter for the moment. "Look, I am _so_ not in the mood for any sarcasm or jokes at the moment so can we please just go and eat?" she asked in a clearly exasperated tone. "Because I'm starving and all I need to calm me down right now is lunch with my best friend in the whole wide world." Despite her last request, a natural sense of childish humor was embedded in Misty's last choice of words. Ash couldn't help snickering at them but one pleading glance from Misty for him to stop wiped that cheesy grin off his face.  
  
"I'm sorry," he apologized sincerely. "Maybe after we get a little bit of food into you you'll feel better?" he suggested, displaying a tiny smile. Misty looked up at him gratefully before sighing heavily and resting her head on his shoulder.  
  
"That... would be great," she breathed tiredly as they made their way to the entrance of the cafe.  
  
Ash felt his chest rise up in his throat the minute Misty leaned into him. Although, it was just a moment of brief contact that they had shared much more than in the past, Ash could not avoid her sweet scent that he inhaled when she moved closer to him or her silky hair tickling his face or her soft breaths against his neck. All of those actions seemed to have an effect on him which a Pokemon attack would, leaving him paralyzed and speechless.  
  
_This is ridiculous_, Ash's mind screamed at him. _You're twenty-four years old and you can't even deal with a girl putting her head on your shoulder.  
  
_The only difference was this was no ordinary girl.  
  
Even when he first met Misty Ash had held an emotion for her that went beyond close friendship. A simple childhood crush easily formed due to the fact he was in her constant presence and it had to have been expected that she was more than just a friend. It had to have been expected that a liking for her had developed and it was quite obvious that the arguments and insults were just a cover up and more of each of them wanting to get a reaction out of the other. It was not necessarily expected that after years of being attracted to Misty, that Ash would fall in love with her and already be in a position where she would never know and he would never be able to tell her.  
  
Ash sighed longingly as he caught a glimpse of the new reminder of why he could never tell Misty his feelings, other than the fact that it could ruin their friendship. The diamond engagement ring she was wearing stared back at him from its position on her left hand.  
  
And unfortunately, he was not the one who had put it there.  
--

_A/N: *uncovers eyes* Well, did it suck?  I admit things in the beginning of this fic might not be up to my regular standard of writing.  The reason is that I wrote this story backwards (don't ask me why) and the beginning parts are the first things I've written for a long time.  I promise that the second chapter will be longer and hopefully better than this one.  Think of it as sort of an introduction and please trust me when I say that I'm going to try to make this a little different from the typical 'Misty's getting married-Ash is sad' plot.  Review please =)___


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

_"Gravity isn't responsible for falling in love."_

**--**

"So, I tell her right before I leave to just pick any meal and call the caterer with her decision since I had to go meet with the florist and she can't even do that," Misty complained as she moved the components of her salad around, picking out all of the carrots and peppers and pushing them off of her plate. Ash watched her continue her rant, barley listening to what she was saying just observing her motions intently with a smirk on his face. "I honestly do not know what I was thinking when I agreed to let her help me with the preparations two months ago," Misty continued in the same agitated tone. "I mean, Lily's the type of person who takes you clubbing Saturday night, she is most definitely not the kind of person you want planning the most important day of your life."

"Well, why do you need Lily to help you with the preparations anyway?" Ash queried, simply out of politeness. He honestly did not want to engage of any talk of the wedding. For the past eight weeks it had been all he had heard about, he did not know he was going to be able to stand another three months of it let alone the big day itself.

"Well, I can't plan it all by myself."

"Well, why doesn't your, uh, wonderful husband-to-be help you with them?" he asked, the sarcasm in his tone going unnoticed by Misty.

"He's too busy with work to do anything to help plan the wedding," Misty responded coolly as she stuffed a piece of lettuce in her mouth

"Oh?" Ash questioned, suddenly intrigued. He tried to hide the happiness in his voice and felt a pang of guilt for being pleased with the fact that they were having problems. "Are you two fighting?" he asked a little too eagerly.

She shrugged. "Well, other than the arguments about the wedding... no," she answered and Ash's crestfallen expression returned. Her brow furrowed upon seeing his change in demeanor. "Why?"

"No reason," he replied, in the indifferent, nonchalant voice he'd learn to perfect... The one he used every time he spoke to Rudy, the goddamn boyfriend Misty had been with for over a year and was now marrying.

Ever since their first date, after Misty had told them she was going out with Rudy, the gym leader who liked her all those years ago and whom had recently moved to Cerulean, Ash had been waiting for the day she would come home in tears, and he would be there with open arms, waiting to hold her tightly. He knew it was parsimonious and was ashamed, but there was nothing he could do. He had been the best friend, the one to comfort Misty, for over a decade. He would listen to the sound of her soft, feminine tears over the phone, and he would jump up and go over to the gym. She would tearfully tell him about the latest breakup or freakish date, and he would hold her and tell her that the right guy was out there, that she deserved better. Sometimes she would fall asleep in his arms and he would hold her, watching her sleep, studying the way her eyes fluttered open and shut while she dreamed, the way her lips curved into a sweet smile. 

Sometimes he would fall asleep too, and they would awake with their bodies and faces pressed together much too close, and she would smile and kiss his cheek, and he would brush the hair away from her face, and they would have the most intimate moment. Then she would thank him for being the best best-friend in the world, and Ash would smile ruefully and leave, feeling like the most pitiful idiot in the world.

Because he'd fallen in love with Misty. He'd fallen hard.

And now she was dating this Rudy guy. And now there were no more nights of comforting Misty, no more tears to kiss away or whispers to be heard. She was always busy with Rudy, here and there with him at one time or another, beginning to have less and less time to spend with Ash. 

That was a reason why Ash was so thrilled to be sharing this meal with her. In the days before Rudy had come back into Misty's life they had gotten together for lunch just about every day. Their daily tradition had turned into a weekly one which led to a monthly one after she had gotten engaged. Ash had managed to find an hour of the day where Misty wasn't busy with the wedding or with Rudy for the two of them to spend some time together. And despite the fact that she arrived, ranting and raving about the wedding preparations which reminded him of all he was losing, Ash was simply just glad to have her in his company.

A natural silence had fallen upon the two as they both indulged to eat their lunches. Misty watched Ash from the corner of her eye as he took another huge bite of his hamburger, oblivious to the fact that she was watching him. She observed as he continued to sloppily eat his meal, secretly wishing that she would be in a position to tell him to eat politely because that type of behavior would not be acceptable in a couple of months. Because he would be the one that she was marrying.

Misty had known for years that she was in love with Ash. It was a fact that she, as well of the rest of the world excluding him, was very well aware of. She could easily deny the fact to anyone who accused her of it but she could not deny it to herself. It was true, she knew it was, and despite the fact she could not admit that fact to Ash, she was at least able to accept it inwardly. There was no use for her to try to convince her mind that she was not in love with him when every fiber of her being knew that she was.

But now, Misty wished she had the power to be able to persuade herself that she did not love Ash and that she did not wish it was him instead of Rudy who asked him to be her's forever, and that it did not kill her that she was going to spend to rest of her life with someone who was just simply not him.

Every day she wondered why she had accepted Rudy's proposal. It had not even been romantic or a real proposal for that matter. The topic of marriage had come up in a conversation between the two of them and therefore they decided to go ahead with it. She did not have the heart to refuse when Rudy suggested they give it a shot or when he took her to pick out her own engagement ring. Misty had always felt too guilty rejecting anyone for one matter or another. Her guilt when rejecting was also linked to her fear of rejection, which was why she never dared to speak a word of her feelings to Ash.

So she sat and weighed out the pros and cons of being married to Rudy. Forever was a long time, Misty had decided, too long of a time to be alone. So if she could not spend it with the object of her desire, she might as well spend it with someone who could offer her a good life and hold the slightest bit of comparison to warm her heart just a little bit.

Her pondering came to a stop after a moment and it was then Misty realized that the conversation between her and Ash had died and they were simply sitting here, eating and not saying a word. A light bulb suddenly went off in her head as she became aware of something that she needed to be updated on frequently. She curled the tablecloth between her fingers before opening her mouth to speak.

"So," Misty began, trying to stir up the new topic. She looked down at her plate, crunching lettuce between her fork so Ash would not be able to see the envious expression about to form on her face. "How are things with you and Melody?" she asked, struggling to keep her voice sounding causal and curious rather than burning with jealousy.

Ash bit his lip, feeling slightly guilty at himself for the words 'Melody, who?" were just about to pass through his lips, indicating that he could not care all too much about his current girlfriend, Melody who they had met all those years ago on Shamuti Island.

Him and Melody had been dating on and off for a while. She had moved to the Kanto region about five ago and they had been together for most of that time. Ash knew that they did not have much of a future but despite that fact he stayed together with her. His motivation for asking her out had been after a conversation with Misty on how serious her relationship with Rudy was getting. Out of spite and jealously he found the need to appear just as happy as he was so he got together with Melody to make him appear so. It was not as if he did not like Melody.  She was a perfectly nice woman and was just as a devoted and loving girlfriend should have been... but she wasn't Misty and therefore she didn't stand a chance of winning love into his heart.

"They're all right," he answered unenthusiastically much to Misty's pleasure. He then looked up at her. "Why?" he challenged, in the same tone Misty has spoken moments before.

Misty shrugged, trying to remain nonchalant. "Just wondering," she responded, popping a slice of cucumber in her mouth, hoping he would believe her. Secretly, she knew she had no reason to be jealous. She had somebody of her own so Ash's relationships should not have bothered her. Misty couldn't help being envious, however, no matter who she was with at the moment the fact that he was with another woman drove her crazy with  envy and spite.

Ash sighed inwardly. He admitted to himself that he was not the best boyfriend in the world to Melody and could afford to treat her with a lot more attention. He had been trying to months before, back when he was forcing himself to love someone else so it would not hurt him so badly that he could not have what he truly wanted. Ash gave up on that one night, however. Although it was that night that proved that he could never have Misty it also proved that he could never love anyone but her. The night when all of these revelations came bubbling to the surface. The night when Misty and Rudy announced their engagement.

Ash recalled sitting in Tracey's apartment the night a small get-together had been planned. Brock and Tracey had been seated in armchairs, beers in hand, watching the football game that illuminated the television. Ash, unfortunately, was forced to listen to the dramatic ramblings of his Melody's day as she latched onto his arm like he was her possession.

He remembered Misty and Rudy entering the apartment fifteen minutes after the rest of them had arrived, smiles on both of their faces. He remembered everyone but himself jumping up to embrace the happy couple when they announced the new of their engagement. He remembered his delayed reaction to the news as he halfheartedly congratulated them, hugging Misty and avoiding Rudy as usual. He remembered the gut wrenching pain that enveloped him the minute his brain processed the information he had been given. He remembered the feeling of a knife stabbing his heart repeatedly, never stopping for a moment to let him breathe. But most importantly, Ash remembered realizing that he had lost his chance with Misty forever.

"Ash. Ash? Ash?" Misty waved a hand in front of her best friend's face to attempt to get his attention. He had been staring intently into his coffee cup for several minutes and she was beginning to wonder if he was listening to her at all. "Hello? Earth to Ash!" she repeated in a louder tone. This was enough to pull him out of his daze and he looked up at her with confused eyes. "Finally," Misty sighed. "What the hell happened? You completely spaced out on me; I thought I'd lost you for a sec." Misty's smiling face furrowed into a worried expression when she noticed that Ash did not even crack a grin to her small joke. "Everything okay?"

Ash met her concerned stare and then, once more, instead of pouring out his heart and soul to her he bit his tongue and willed back the words he so desperately tried to speak. "Don't worry, Myst. I'm fine, I was just... thinking."   
  
"About what?"

_About how I love you_, he thought. _About how I've loved you for as long as I can remember. How I want to take you in my arms and never let you go._

There was so much he could say. 

_She's getting married,_ Ash reminded himself sternly. _If you said any of those things, you would look like a fool. Things would become awkward and your friendship would be ruined. Do you want that to happen? No. You must never tell her how you feel. _So he said the last thing on his mind.

"About how happy I am for you and Rudy."

TBC

--

_A/N: I hope this chapter cleared up some more things. I think you can sort of see how I had the first and second put together from the way chap. 2 starts off. Also, I know that it is sort of cliché to use Rudy as Misty's fiancé when it has been done so many times but I couldn't really think of anyone else to use. Of what I know, he's the only character in the show that had an interest in her and had somewhat of an attitude at the same time. I thought about just making up someone of my own but that seemed boring. Same thing with Melody. Oh yeah, and there'll be a cheesy love quote at the beginning of each chapter, I just decided to do add that, lol. R=R =)_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

****

_"They say never kiss a friend because that friend will be forever lost,' but what if the one person you are looking for is that friend you've never kissed?"_

--

Ash watched the movie that illuminated the television as he sat on the couch in Melody's apartment.  He looked down at his girlfriend as she cuddled closer to him, taking a handful of potato chips from the bowl on his lap.  Melody had suggested the two of them have a 'night in' where they could sit, watch a movie, and then have a deep and meaningful talk about their relationship.  Ash had to resist the urge to laugh at loud at the request.  There was certainly not much depth to his and Melody's relationship, should he even call it that.  She was simply someone he had been using to get his mind off of Misty that he had wound up being with for too long.  Ash decided he would wait for her to get bored and break up with him.  He didn't have the guts to dump her when he couldn't give her the real reason for why he was doing it.

He stared as the figures of Reese Witherspoon and Luke Perry moved across the screen as the actors that had been cast in _Sweet Home Alabama_, the film Melody had insisted they rented.

_"Nobody meets their soulmate when they're ten years old… I mean where's the fun in that, right?"_

Ash felt his chest tighten as that particular line of the movie was spoken.  He remembered years ago watching the same film with Misty and making eye contact with her at the same specific part.  He hadn't known why she happened to be looking at him when the same line was said, but it was another one of those moments between them that he continued to contemplate.

"Isn't that sweet, honey?" Melody asked, hugging Ash tighter.  "We met when we were ten years old."

Ash tried not to roll his eyes at her.  "Uh, actually, Mel, we met when we were twelve.  I met Misty when I was ten."

Melody's expression darkened.  She hated when Ash did this.  She hated when she tried to have a romantic moment with him and he ruined it by bringing up Misty.  It was not as if she didn't like the redhead.  They had become friendly since Melody moved to Cerulean.  It was the fact that she was so tight with her boyfriend that angered her so.  Melody knew that Misty was taken but she still had her doubts.  She remembered those words Misty had spoken to her when they first met, confirming that she did in fact have feelings for Ash.  Although things had changed drastically over the years, Melody knew that Misty's feelings would never completely go away.  And she was beginning to worry that it was the same thing with Ash.

"Oh," she muttered quietly.  "My mistake," she continued, the icy tone in her voice going unnoticed by Ash as they watched the rest of the movie in silence.

--

Misty entered the hallway to the gym tiredly, dropping her keys and bag onto the table as she did so.  Her day had been the same as usual, consisting of making various wedding plans.  For hours on end she had to meet with strangers discussing money or flowers or food or some other wedding-related thing.  The whole process was dreadful, time-consuming, and very annoying to be bluntly honest.  Misty was beginning to wonder why she was doing so much to perfect a day she didn't really want to happen.

Misty's musings were interrupted as the sound of thumping came from the stairway.  She saw Lily running down the stairs, pink curls flying everywhere, and clad in nothing but a man's button down shirt as she searched for something frantically in a nearby drawer, oblivious to her younger sister's presence.  Misty watched her sister with an expression of amusement and disapproval before clearing her throat loudly; making Lily aware she was standing there.

"Oh!" Lily exclaimed in surprise, stopping her search for a moment.  "Myst!  Hey, uh, how long have you been standing there?" she asked sheepishly while glancing down at her attire in embarrassment.

Misty raised her eyebrows.  "Long enough to wonder if _this_," she said, gesturing toward her lack of clothing. "...was the reason you had so much trouble making my catering decisions last week?"

"No, that was someone else," Lily informed her matter-of-factly before realizing that was not necessarily a good thing.

"Uh huh, and would you mind telling me the name of whoever your man is today, and please, Lily, tell me you know his name," Misty added toward the end getting her sister to look at her with semi-offended expression.

"Of course, I know his name!  It's Jeff… or is it Jack…?"  Lily furrowed her brow in confusion.  "Well, it's something with a J, I know that."  She frowned again.  "I think…"

Misty shook her head to herself.  The gym was now run by Misty and Lily only.  Daisy and Violet both had husbands and children in other cities and had moved away long ago.  Lily was the only one out of the four who remained single, and frankly, it did not bother her one bit.  She had a pretty care-free attitude when it came to dating.  A little too care-free in Misty's opinion.  Lily saw nothing wrong with having a different guy every week or sleeping with people she had just met.  Misty didn't know whether to feel sorry for or be envious of her sister.  Lily had never had a real serious relationship and would most likely never been in the situation that her younger sister had wound up in.  But still, Misty wasn't sure if that was necessarily a bad thing.  After all, Lily seemed a lot happier than she was.

"Um, so I guess I'm gonna go back upstairs and… you know…" Lily spoke up, implying what she was trying to say without actually saying it.

Misty held her hands up.  "Please, no details," she begged and Lily flashed an impish smile before heading off in the other direction

She watched as her sister scampered back up the stairs, the small package now in her hand since she had found it in the messy drawer.  Misty sighed to herself and glanced as the watch on her hand.  She knew what events the night had in store for her.  Dinner at Rudy's place, boring conversation between the two of them, sex.  It was the same meaningless thing every time they spent the night together, and quite, frankly Misty was sick of it.  She had no idea how she was going to survive the same thing for the rest of her life.

The shrill ringing of the phone suddenly pierced the air, startling her.

"Hello?" she answered halfheartedly.

"Hey, it's me," Rudy informed her and Misty frowned at his assumption that _he considered himself the only 'me' in her life._

"Hi, I was just about to call you," she responded, deciding it wasn't a complete lie.  "Do you want me to come over to your place now for our late dinner?"  Misty heard Rudy sigh on the other side and she immediately knew the answer to her question.

"How about a really late dinner?"

"Why, where are you?"

"I'm still at the office.  Big press conference tomorrow.  One of the computers is completely fucked up."

Misty rolled her eyes.  Rudy had retired from the gym leader world long ago and his gym was now run by his sister, Mahri.  The actual reason he had moved to Cerulean was because of his big executive job.  He worked for some huge company that Misty honestly had no idea what they did.  All she knew that Rudy's work took up just about all off his time, which was his excuse of why _she was the one planning their entire wedding.  Whenever he cancelled on her, his excuse was always work-related.  A meeting that ran late, an emergency at the office, dinner with his boss.  It was always __something with Rudy._

"Babe?  You there?"

Mist remained silent before speaking again.  "I don't know, Rudy, am I?"

And then without knowing why she was so mad or why she cared so much, she slammed down the phone in annoyance, not letting Rudy get another word in.

Misty shook her head to herself.  Why did she care so much?  It was as if she was dying to spend time with her fiancé.  Why did Rudy blowing her off make her so angry?  She didn't _love _Rudy.  She just wanted to _be with him, because it was nice to have someone to call, to go out with, to provide for her, to sleep with.  Because Rudy was the best she could do._

Misty was about to walk away from the telephone but her hand lingered on the receiver as a sudden idea formed in her mind.  She stood there for several moment, contemplating.  A decision was eventually made as she picked up the phone and dialed the familiar number.  She rethought her choice one last time as her finger hovered above the last digit that needed to be pressed.  She willed herself to push that last button and put the phone near her ear, waiting until the familiar voice picked up.

--

Ash sighed thankfully as the credits began to roll.  He glanced down at Melody and to his relief and surprise, she had drifted off to sleep, despite that it was still pretty early.  Gingerly, he wriggled from her grasp and tip toed over to the television, ejecting the video from the VCR.  He quietly moved to put the tape back in its case, trying not to make any noise that would wake Melody and leave him stuck in a night full of 'serious conversation'.  Unfortunately, the ringing of the phone ruined that for him.

Ash dove for the device, picking it up on the first ring, glimpsing at Melody briefly and sighing in relief when he saw that it had not woken her.  He tried to keep his voice as low as he could when he answered.

"Hello?"

"Ash?  It's Misty.  What are you doing tonight?"

--

_Get a load of me, get a load of you  
Walkin' down the street, and I hardly know you  
It's just like we were meant to be  
  
Holding hands with you, and we're out at night  
Got a girlfriend, you say it isn't right  
And I've got someone waiting too_

Misty giggled as she exited the movie theatre, a container of popcorn in one hand and her soda in the other.  She listened in amusement as Ash complained about the movie she had dragged him to that just finished.

"That was definitely the worst movie I have ever seen in my life," he said expressively.  "I could have written a better script in my sleep."

"Aw, come on, it wasn't that bad."

"Misty, it was a total chick flick!" he exclaimed

"Well, I'm sorry it wasn't one of those action films you big strong men seem to _love so much," she shot back teasingly.  You know, with guns going off, and bombs exploding, and, um, buses going really fast."_

Ash raised an eyebrow at her.  "Buses?"

"Shut up, I'm a romantic comedy girl, I don't know what's in any other genres," she told him while sucking the straw of her soda and drinking the carbonated water.

Ash snickered.  "Do you know anything?" he asked jokingly getting elbowed in the ribs from Misty in return.  "Ow!" he cried, rubbing the spot where she had hit him.  "You know, why did I even agree to go out with you tonight?  All you do is abuse me anyway."

"Oh, come on," Misty smirked.  "You know you love it."

Ash paused for a moment to contemplate that he actually did love the attention Misty gave him, as violent as it could be sometimes.  "Well, still.  This is the second sappy romance movie I got manipulated into watching this evening."  She looked at him confusedly and he further explained.  "Melody decided we should have a staying in night where we watch a movie and have 'meaningful discussions about our relationship'."  He made air quotes on the last words of his sentence causing Misty to laugh.

"And how did you manage to get out of that one?"

"I didn't.  She sort of fell asleep when the movie was over, so I left her a note…" Ash admitted sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.  "…saying that I went out to the store to buy milk."

Misty gaped at him incredulously.  "Ash, you are horrible!" she exclaimed.  "You know, if you were my boyfriend, I'd never let you get away with that," she informed him.  _If you were my boyfriend, I'd never let you out of my sight again_, she thought inwardly.

Ash chuckled.  "Well, if I was _your boyfriend, then I'd never dream of pulling that kind of stunt."_

"Why not?" she queried.

_Because I'd never want to leave you_.  "Because, I know you'd kick my ass if I tried," he responded cheekily.

"You got that right," Misty grinned.  She dropped her finished soda into a nearby garbage can and took Ash's hand with her free one.  He entwined his fingers with her's and they continued to walk down the sidewalk, appearing to onlookers as any normal couple on a date, all of them oblivious to how complicated their situation really was.  The two of them continued to stroll down the street, Misty stopped at a nearby bench, plopping down on it and pulling Ash down next to her.  She stuck her hand into her container of popcorn and stuck a handful of the yellow kernels in her mouth.__

"You do realize that most people get popcorn _during_ the movie, right?" Ash asked.

Misty shrugged, eating another handful.  "I thought you realized by now that I'm not like most people."

"Yeah, most people didn't pound me with a mallet when I was a kid," he joked before grabbing a handful of popcorn from the bag and throwing it in Misty's face.

"Oh!" she exclaimed in surprise.  "Yeah?  Well, most people didn't destroy my bike when I first met them!" she cried as she too threw popcorn at Ash.

"Well, most people…" Ash's voice trailed off as he tried to continue the playful banter existing between them.  He suddenly became aware of how close his and Misty's faces were.  Their noses barley apart, their lips almost touching.  Misty felt a shudder of desire run through her body as she felt Ash's breath on her mouth, warm and rampant.  Her heart rate accelerated, pounding so fiercely she feared Ash would be able to hear it.  The space between their faces was slowly decreasing, to the point where there would be none at all…

Suddenly, the tune of Liz Phair's 'Why Can't I' filled the air, completely ruining the moment.  Misty looked down at her ringing phone, not noticing Ash's expression of hurt and disappointment.  She sighed out loud as she saw the words _Rudy-Home illuminating her screen.  Reluctantly, she opened her phone._

"Hello?  You want me to come over now?  I thought you had to work.  Rudy, I'm not at home.  I'm… out.  What do you mean 'out where'?  I don't ask you every detail about what you do when you work late.  Of course, what I'm doing isn't more important than you.  What kind of a question is that?  Rudy, I… fine, I'll be there soon.  Bye."

She flipped her phone shut and turned to Ash with an apologetic glance.  He had obviously understood what was going on from hearing her side of the conversation and was now looking at her understandingly.

"Let me guess… duty calls?" he inquired, trying to grin weakly but was not too successful in doing so.

Misty sighed.  "I'm sorry."

"Nah, don't worry about it.," Ash reassured her, struggling to sound nonchalant as he waved his hand in dismissal.  "I'm gonna head back soon too.  Melody probably thinks I've been kidnapped being the drama queen she is," he chuckled.  Misty made eye contact with him and the two of them stared at one another longingly before Ash broke the silence, leaning in and kissing her tenderly on the cheek in an area not too shy of her mouth.  "Goodnight," he murmured.

"Goodnight," she replied softly before willing herself to stand up and walk down the street in the direction of Rudy's apartment which was not too far from where they were currently.

Ash leaned back against the bench as soon as she left, placing his hands behind his head.  He gazed up at the night sky, the numerous stars that shone shined brightly against the blackness.  He felt a dry structure brush his face and he looked up to see a dead leaf had fallen from a tree that happened to be hovering above him, symbolizing the true beginning of autumn.  Ash sat up and glanced down the street to get a glimpse at Misty one last time before he headed back, but she had already disappeared amongst the darkness of the night.

_  
This is, this is just the beginning  
We're already wet, and we're gonna go swimming  
  
Why can't I breathe whenever I think about you  
Why can't I speak whenever I talk about you  
It's inevitable, it's a fact that we're gonna get down to it  
So tell me  
Why can't I breathe whenever I think about you_

_Isn't this the best part of breakin' up  
Finding someone else you can't get enough of  
Someone who wants to be with you too  
  
It's an itch we know we are gonna scratch  
Gonna take a while for this egg to hatch  
But wouldn't it be beautiful  
  
Here we are, we're at the beginning  
We haven't fucked yet, but my heads spinning  
  
Why can't I breathe whenever I think about you  
Why can't I speak whenever I talk about you  
It's inevitable, it's a fact that we're gonna get down to it  
So tell me  
Why can't I breathe whenever I think about you  
  
I'd love for you to make me wonder  
Where it's goin'  
I'd love for you to pull me under  
Somethin's growin'  
for this that we can control  
Baby I am dyin'  
  
Why can't I breathe whenever I think about you  
Why can't I speak whenever I talk about you  
  
Why can't I breathe whenever I think about you  
Why can't I speak whenever I talk about you  
It's inevitable, it's a fact that we're gonna get down to it  
So tell me  
Why can't I breathe whenever I think about you_

TBC

--

_A/N: Good?  The original chapter I admit was better than this one, but since my computer decided to delete that first copy I had to rewrite the whole thing *pulls out hair*, lol, it was a very stressful situation.  I hope you all noticed that Misty's ring tone was the song I included there at the end. Heh, me trying to be creative. Anyway, I know I made Lily look like a total whore in this one, but we still like her in this one besides that fact.  She has an important part in this fic, and I just wanted to add a little flavor to her character ;)  I hope everyone else in character,  R+R please  =)_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"You know you're in love when you can't sleep because the reality is better than the dream."

--

The morning sun shone through the thin curtains that lined the bedroom windows, warming up the room, and casting a yellow glow onto the bed. As the rapidly moving sun hit her face, she stirred, and let out a tired groan, before pulling the pillow over her head. Soon afterward, her alarm clock let out a tremendous blare, and she reached her arm out from under the blanket just far enough to hit the snooze button, promising herself she would get up in five minutes.

Misty stretched her arms high above her head, trying to wake up a little bit. She rubbed her sleep filled eyes and rolled over on her side only to see Rudy lying next to her, sound asleep, and naked. It took her a moment to register that she was in fact without clothes as well as soon and then the events of last night suddenly came flooding back to her.

After she said goodnight to Ash and went over to Rudy's apartment to see what he wanted, it was clear he only wanted one thing. He had talked to her for a decent amount of time, letting the two of them exchanging the events of one another's day and having some discussion about the wedding. And then, without even asking Misty is she was up for it, Rudy kissed her hungrily before dragging her into the bedroom and indulging in much deeper actions.

Misty shook her head to herself as she stood up from the bed, donning a nearby robe. If there was anything that confused her tremendously it was the way Rudy regarded her. He would have his moments, where he was so sweet and caring where she began to contemplate on whether or not she could force herself to love him. And then that would all change so quickly. He would constantly blow her off, saying he had to work every single time, and then meet up with her later, only wanting to sleep with her. Misty had told herself that Rudy was not using her for sex. He could have picked anyone to do that with and if he was using her, she highly doubted he would go as far as making her his wife. She knew he could be shallow, but he wasn't that pathetic, or so she hoped.

She entered the bathroom, running the faucet and splashing cold water over her face as her musings continued. The worst part about Rudy not treating her the way he was supposed to was that Misty constantly went running to Ash whenever he cancelled on her or they an argument. Just like she had did last night.

Misty stopped washing her face for a moment as she was reminded of yet another important event of the night before that she had yet to try and make sense out of. There was only one thing she was sure of.

They had almost kissed. Again.

This wasn't the first time that she and Ash had one of their little moments, where they would stare deeply into one another's eyes, their faces way too close for friends. She recalled one time where he actually began to lean in toward her. She remembered the way his soft breath felt over her mouth and how the space between them began to diminish by the second. They had been interrupted, however. By Brock, nonetheless. Misty wasn't sure if that had been a good thing or a bad thing. And the fact that she didn't know what would become of them kissing, she never initiated it. Because if there was one thing Misty had taught herself after fourteen years of secretly being in love with her best friend, was not to take any risks unless you knew what the outcome of them would be.

Unfortunately, however, without taking any risks, Misty would never get to be with Ash. And therefore, she would never get to live the life she dreamed of and would simply be stuck in the one she had been forced into.

--

  
Ash stared straight ahead at the open road, observing the characteristics of the geography between him while paying attention to what was in front of him. He gazed at the several trees and grassy knolls that were located in some places. From his position the distinct geography and characteristics before him looked as nothing but a surreal blur, all mashed into a hazy mix of blues, greens, and grays.  
  
His silver convertible was the only car on the seemingly empty street; the wind blew through his ebony hair as he sped down the cement path. No other sound of human nor Pokemon life was recognizable to him. All he heard was the wind blowing, the engine roaring, and the radio blasting, he was all on his own. Suddenly, Ash dismissed his last inward statement as he came to a realization; Misty's voice from the passenger seat disturbed him from his tranquil state and made him aware that he in fact did have company.  
  
"Thank you so much for coming with me," she repeated yet again in a sincere tone. "I would not have been able to do this by myself, I know nothing about money. If you weren't coming with me I would have somehow been tricked into paying twice the amount." She let a laugh escape her lips and Ash closed his eyes as he realized that they were not on one of their typical drives together.   
  
He remembered the destination Misty had asked him to accompany her with. She needed to go to the hotel where her and Rudy's wedding would be at to make the final payment, and for some reason or another, her fiancé was not available. She had gone over to Ash's apartment and begged him to come with her so she would not let her naivety force her to pay an unfair amount. His first instinct was to decline, not wanting anything to do with joining of the woman he loved and another man. But then she looked at him with her aquamarine eyes that captivated him so, and Ash could not find the heart to refuse.  
  
"Don't worry; I'll make sure you pay the fair amount for the room. I won't let any sneaky managers make you overpay," he reassured her, taking his eyes from the open road to flash a smile at her. Misty returned the gesture, touched by his kindness and generosity.  
  
"You're so sweet," she told him tenderly and he felt his heart increase a beat at the statement. A displeased expression then formed onto Misty's face and she leaned back into her seat, muttering to herself. "Ugh, God, I can't believe Rudy had to work, he should be the one coming to look at the place. I mean it's his wedding too."  
  
Ash tried to hide the grin forming due to Misty's irritation with Rudy at the moment. She looked back up toward him and he immediately made his happy expression turn into a sympathetic one. "Hey, don't worry about it," he told her, sensing her sadness. "You've still got me."  
  
She smiled at him tenderly. "What would I do without you?"  
  
"Suffer endlessly, no doubt," he replied in a joking tone which Misty felt obligated to laugh at.  
  
"I'm serious," she told him through giggles. "You are the only person who is ever there when I need something. I mean my own fiancé can't make it to see where he will be getting married and here you are..." she stared at him longingly before finally continuing. "...rescuing me. At my side like always," she continued and Ash had to physically tighten his grip to the steering wheel to contain himself from leaning over and kissing her right then and there. "You're like... my super-hero," Misty finished, a smirk escaping her lips.  
  
Ash began to laugh slightly as well at her reference toward him, although, in reality it was very true. "Except without the tights and cape," he commented with a grin.  
  
"Oh, believe me, honey, I can deal without that," Misty joked and again Ash had to control himself even more, especially due her previous reference to him.   
  
Neither of them spoke for a moment, lingering in the melancholy that was taking place. Misty let her eyes drift to Ash, his own gaze fixated on the road before him. She felt a pang in her chest as she stared at his handsome face, observing each feature of perfection. She studied his chocolate orbs, filled with such intensity at the time being. Her eyes drifted to the features of his smooth skin and his dark hair until they fell upon his lips. His lips which seemed so utterly kissable to her, the lips which she had wanted no more than to press against her own very own and then...  
  
_No!_ Misty's mind screamed at her, interrupting her own thoughts. _No, you can't think of him like that anymore_, her own subconscious began to remind her and she knew her inner self was right. Although, her feelings for Ash would always be within her heart there was no use in dreaming of this fantasy. It was obviously not coming true and she had learned to accept that he would never look at her as more than a friend.  
  
She let her gaze intensify on Ash who was still oblivious to her musings she was having about him. Getting over the fact that he would never return her love had been the hardest thing she ever had to do. So many times the words had been at the tip of her tongue but as usual her fear and pride prevented her from speaking what she so desperately wanted to. But she had come to the conclusion that it would be okay even if he never knew how she felt. Because Ash would always be her best friend and an influential part of her life.   
  
Misty had thought that particular fact would always be true up until recently. She knew that after she were married there was no way the two of them would hang out the way that they used to. As much as she hated to admit, she knew she'd be living in this new lifestyle which she would need to grow accustomed to rather quickly. She would not have time to do the things she used to do or have fun with her friends without Rudy there. She would feel guilty for spending more time with Ash than him. And Misty was becoming very aware that even though she would be gaining a husband... she would be losing a best friend in the process.  
  
"You know..." she spoke up, finally breaking the long silence. Ash shifted his glance over toward her, awaiting whatever she were about to say next. "I'm really going to miss you being my savior."  
  
Ash's face contorted in confusion. "What?"  
  
Misty sighed. "Ash, as much as we might hate to admit... we both know that things aren't going to be the same once I'm married. I mean, I know we'll still be friends but we won't be able to hang out as much anymore." Every word she spoke had an added tone of sadness and disappointment. "I'm... I'm afraid... that this marriage may cause us to drift apart," she confessed, bring her gaze to meet his attentive one.  
  
Ash felt panic arise within his body as she awaited his reaction to her admittance of what she feared she was going to lose. This concept had never dawned on him before. He had always assumed that no matter what happened, no matter what lovers either of them became committed to that they would always be together. Hell, they had stayed together fourteen whole years with many outsiders getting in the way. They would always be the best of friends and that was Ash's rock. That fact assured him to know that Misty would always be a part of his life even if he could not be with her in the way she wanted to be. The very real possibility of not being able to see her whenever he wanted or the two of them actually drifting apart terrified Ash beyond belief. There was no way he could ever let that happen; he had to hold on to what he had left of her.  
  
"Myst," he started, shifting his gaze toward her but from the corner of his eye he was still concentrating on driving. "Nothing in this world can ever cause us to drift apart." Misty looked doubtful. "Seriously. I mean, we've been best friends for over a decade... how many people can say that? No matter what happens, we will always be a part of each other's life, I promise you that."  
  
A childish expression formed on her face. "You swear?" she pouted and Ash laughed at her playful demeanor.  
  
"Yup," he nodded and held out his pinkie finger. "Pinkie swear."  
  
Misty giggled at his immaturity but regardless, linked her own pinkie around his, binding their promise, a pact they sometimes engaged in back in their childhood days. "You better not break, your promise, Ash Ketchum," she told him warningly. "Or else you'll have an appointment with my mallet."  
  
Ash looked frightened. "I promise, I promise," he repeated, obviously scared from her temper. The two of them smirked at this but the playful atmosphere was reverted back to a serious one as Ash entwined all of his fingers with Misty's tightly holding her hand. "Don't worry," he reassured her gently. "Nothing is going to change. It's always going to be you and me."  
  
Misty's gaze lowered to where their hands were grasped and then moved back up to Ash's own stare. "You and me?" she repeated, as if trying to make sure that he sincerely meant what he was saying.  
  
Ash nodded and lifted their attached hands to his face, kissing the top of hers and then massaging the soft skin with his finger. "You and me always," he assured her in his most softest and meaningful tone.  
  
Misty said nothing. She just simply stared at him for a moment, touched and her heart melting at his kindness. A relieved laugh escaped her lips and she leaned her head against his shoulder, hugging him slightly. Ash managed to move one of his arms off of the steering wheel to place it around her frame. He leaned down and kissed the top of her head softly, a gesture which she just grinned at in response. He averted his gaze back toward the open road which he had been paying too little of attention to for the last few minutes. Misty's previous reference toward him returned to his mind as the words of the song on the radio fled to his ears.  
  
I am so high, I can hear heaven_  
I am so high, I can hear heaven  
Whoa but heaven  
No, heaven don't hear me  
  
And they say  
That a hero could save us  
I'm not gonna stand here and wait  
I'll hold onto the wings of the eagles  
Watch as we all fly away  
  
Someone told me  
Love would all save us  
But, how can that be  
Look what love gave us  
  
A world full of killing  
And blood spilling  
That world never came  
  
And they say  
That a hero could save us  
I'm not gonna stand here and wait  
I'll hold onto the wings of the eagles  
Watch as we all fly away  
  
Now that the world isn't ending  
It's love that I'm sending to you  
It isn't the love of a hero  
And that's why I fear it won't do_

And they say_  
That a hero could save us  
I'm not gonna stand here and wait  
I'll hold onto the wings of the eagles  
Watch as we all fly away  
  
And they're watching us  
They're watching us  
As we all fly away   
And they're watching us  
They're watching us  
As we all fly away   
And they're watching us  
They're watching us  
As we all fly away_

TBC

--

_A/N: From the reviews I've gotten I can see that people don't like me being too critical of my writing so I'm going to keep my mouth shut this time ;)  Heh, I just happen to be kind of a perfectionist and self-conscious of my work so that's why I always have my little explanations at the end, but thank you to whoever has reviewed telling me I have no reason to be.  Anyway, the song is Hero by Danny Elfman, it's from the Spider-man soundtrack, lol.  I hope you enjoyed and please review =)_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

_"If you have reasons for loving someone, then you are using your mind, but if you love someone for no reason, then you are using your heart."_

--

Misty plastered another fake smile on her face and murmured another thank you as some old acquaintance she had maybe seen once in her life sauntered over and congratulated her. Although she and Rudy were already several months into their engagement and only had another few more to go until the wedding, they were having a somewhat belated engagement party in the lavish party room located in some restaurant not too far from Rudy's office building.

For some unknown reason, Rudy had come home about a week or two ago, announced they were having an engagement party at his work, an idea suggested by some of his fellow coworkers, and that was the end of it. Despite the fact that Misty was in no mood and never would be in the mood to go and mingle with a bunch of Rudy's friends, some of whom she'd never even met , or with distant friends and family, she was obligated to show up to this ridiculous affair.

Smoothing the fabric of her dress she had to spend her own money on for the night, Misty ran her hands through the waves in her hair which the hair dresser had forced into her natural straight style with a curling iron and a brush. Even as an adult, Misty hated getting all fancied up. She never saw the point in spending a whole day preparing herself with an ensemble she would be wearing for just a couple of hours. A usually uncomfortable ensemble at that. It was when things like this came about that Misty's tomboy personality as a child came bubbling to the surface. It was that very fact that made her dread the morning before her wedding when it hadn't even happened yet.

Tapping her fingers against the bar with the French manicure that she also had to pay for, Misty's eyes lingered to her fiancé who was chatting with the same blonde woman who he had been talking to at the beginning of the party. Rudy had vaguely mentioned something about an old business associate being in town just minutes before they left for the party. Misty, however, realized as soon as he saw the interaction between the two that they were much more than just coworkers and was beginning to suspect that this woman (whom Rudy had not even introduced her to) was the real reason that he decided to put together this spur-of-the-moment affair.

She didn't mind as much as most engaged women would. Rudy was very smooth with the ladies, Misty knew that for a fact considering it was his charm that had wove her in. She was not that bothered with him talking to a most-likely ex-girlfriend of his as she once would have. She had come to the conclusion with herself that if Rudy loved her enough to be marrying her, a little flirting here and there with other women was no big deal. She sure as hell did with Ash 24/7 so there was no point of being a hypocrite.

Misty searched the party room for more familiar faces. She spotted a semi-intoxicated-most-likely-to-be-completely-drunk-off-his-ass-by-the time-he-got-home Brock chatting up seventeen year old Mahri at the other end of the bar, completely unfazed at the fact that the age difference made him a felon in parts of the country. Her sister, Daisy, was obviously very glad that her divorce had been finalized considering she was surrounded by about three men. Violet was sitting with her husband at a table while, giving an extra long lecture to the baby-sitter that was watching her son on her cell phone. Last she had seen Lily she was hanging all over a waiter and there was a 99% chance that she was making out with him in a bathroom stall at the moment. Melody and Tracey were having a friendly chat somewhere near the back.

And then she saw him.

He was sitting at one of the tables by himself; a beer in hand which he would take sips of at random intervals. He was staring off into space, his chocolate eyes not focusing on anything in particular but just seeming to be in a pensive train of thought.

Misty straightened out her dress and hair once more before taking a large gulp of her wine. If she was going to survive the rest of this night, she was going to have to get at least a little drunk. Picking up her glass and trying to gracefully balance herself on the heels she was wearing, she sauntered over to where Ash was sitting.

"Ugh," she groaned sliding into the empty seat next to him, startling him for his daze and making him aware of her presence.  "Well, I am just having the best time ever, aren't you?" she asked, her voice dripping with obvious sarcasm that surprised Ash slightly.

"Oh yeah," he muttered in response, his tone matching her previous one.

"I just absolutely hate parties like this," she went on. "All the dressing up and the mingling and the small talk with people you don't even know..." she trailed off, sighing in exasperation. "None of it bodes well for me."

"Hmm," Ash made a noise of understanding. "Maybe it's not the party you don't like," he spoke up. Misty looked at him in confusion. "Maybe you're just really antisocial?" he suggested, his semiserious demeanor turning into a joking one.

"Oh!" Misty exclaimed, shooting his a dirty look. "I have half a mind to throw this right in your face," she informed, referring to her drink she was holding up. Ash watched as she downed half of her wine not even a second later in one gulp.

"Whoa, easy there, missy" he said, easing the glass from her lips.

"Sorry," she apologized breathlessly. "I just need _something to get me through the night."_

"Yeah? Well, at this rate you're gonna be an alcoholic in a couple of years, because I have a feeling you'll be going to a lot more of these parties once you're the wife of a highly respected businessmen," he teased her.

Misty groaned loudly at the realization and rested her head in her hands. "Wonderful," she muttered sarcastically.

"Hey, but look on the bright side," Ash said gently, making Misty take her head out of her hands and look at him. "I'll always be there to take you away from it all whenever you want me to. I'll always give you an escape."

She looked at him, her aqua eyes filled with uncertainty and desperation. "Really?"

Ash rested his hand onto of her's. "Really," he reassured, and the slightest of smiles formed on her face. He returned the grin, the only reason for him being happy was because she was. He had noticed how stressed Misty had been lately and even though she was slowly slipping away from him, some things had never changed. He was still the only one who could make her smile when she was down.

The stared intently at one another, basking in the serenity of the moment. Suddenly, another voice pierced the air, interrupting them just like all the other times.

"Misty!"

Misty whirled around at the sound of her name, breaking her eye contact with Ash. She was slightly surprised as well as annoyed to see her fiancé approaching her.

"Come here there's some people I want you to meet," Rudy explained, tugging Misty's arm and getting her to stand up from her chair before letting her get a word in.

"Wha- Rudy," Misty spoke up, causing him to stop and look at her with a quizzical expression. She gestured toward Ash who was still sitting there and tried to indicate to Rudy just how rude he was being.

Unfortunately, however, Rudy was no better at catching on to things as Ash was.

"Oh," he exclaimed as he noticed Ash sitting there and acknowledged his presence with a nod of his head. "Hey, man." Ash mumbled an incoherent response as he took a sip of his beer. Rudy turned back to Misty. "Let's go," he demanded before going in the other direction, assuming Misty was right behind him.

Misty sighed as she watched his departing figure. The blonde woman he had been talking to had left the party apparently, giving Misty an explanation of why Rudy now wanted her own attention. As much as she did not want to go and mingle with a bunch of Rudy's snobby coworkers she knew she had no choice. She could not exactly ditch her fiancé and sit with Ash, especially since a couple of people had questioned if their had been any romantic history between them at the beginning of the party. 

With an apologetic smile, Misty turned to Ash who had also realized the situation she was in. "Forgive me?" she asked him feebly.

Ash forced a grin onto his face before answering as sincerely as he could. "How could I not?"

With that, Misty offered him a grateful expression before picking up her wine and dragging her feet over to where Rudy was standing along with another couple.

"Well, well, well," an older man with a beard that Misty knew to be her fiancé's boss spoke up as soon as she approached. "Is this the lovely Misty I've heard so much about?"

Misty opened her mouth to reply but Rudy snaked an arm around her waist, holding her in a way that made her feel like he was claiming her as his possession. "Yup," he answered for her. "Here she is."

"It's nice to finally meet you dear, I'm Bob Hillman," he introduced himself, offering out his hand.

She shook his hand and tried to reply as politely as she could. "Nice to meet you Mr. Hillman."

"Oh, please, call me, Bob," he laughed and Misty forced herself to chuckle along. "I can't have my best worker's wife calling me Mister, now can I?" he added while heartily slapping Rudy on the shoulder.

"Well, we're not husband and wife just yet, Bob," Rudy reminded him.

"Oh, that's right," Bob's wife, who was also amongst the group, spoke up. "How long until the big day?"

"Um, about two to three months," Misty answered.

"It's coming up. Are you nervous yet?"

Misty chuckled uncomfortably. "Not just yet."

"Don't worry," Bob's wife continued. "You will be." She laughed loudly, finding her tiny joke hilarious for some reason. "I'm sorry, dear, don't mind me, I just let all that champagne go straight to my head." Misty continued to giggle uneasily and took sip of her wine after Bob's wife clanked her champagne glass to her own.

The others began to drift off into other conversation that Misty was not a part of. She took the opportunity to turn around to look back at Ash. He was still seated at the table, drinking a new beer, the empty bottle disregarded. His gaze met her's and he offered a weak smile at her, one which she managed to return.

Suddenly, it felt as if Ash were a lot far away from her than he had been before. She knew he had not moved his position and the size of the room had certainly remained the same size, but still, he seemed further from her, more distant.

And that was when it hit her. In reality, she was slipping away from Ash. By falling into this marriage which she didn't even really want she was losing him as well as everything else she once had known. Misty would not be herself anymore. She would be simply known as Rudy's wife. Her husband would be the person that she had to be with 24/7, not her friends.

Misty stared at the couple she was standing amongst, not familiar with either of them. She watched as they laughed a joke she had not heard that she probably would not have found amusing or understood, anyway. It was then she realized that this was what all of her Saturday nights would be. Accompanying Rudy to various affairs, being forced to speak and become friends with people she didn't even like or know. But still, that was she had been subjected to now.

Misty felt a cold shudder of dread run through her body as she glanced back at Ash and then back over to the people around her one more time.

This was the first day of the rest of her miserable life.

_I've got it all but I feel so deprived  
__I go up, I come down and I'm emptier inside  
Tell me what is this thing that I feel like I'm missing  
And why can't I let go  
  
There's gotta be more to life  
Then chasing down every temporary high  
To satisfy me  
Cause the more that I'm  
Tripping out thinking there must be more to life  
Well it's life, but I'm sure  
There's gotta be more  
Then wanting more  
  
I've got the time and I'm wasting it slowly  
Here in this moment I'm half way out the door  
Onto the next thing, I'm searching  
For something that's missing _

_There's gotta be more to life  
Then chasing down every temporary high  
To satisfy me  
Cause the more that I'm  
Tripping out thinking there must be more to life  
Well it's life, but I'm sure  
There's gotta be more  
Then wanting more  
  
Than waiting on something other than this  
Why am I feeling like there's something I missed  
  
There's gotta be more to life  
Then chasing down every temporary high  
To satisfy me  
Cause the more that I'm  
Tripping out thinking there must be more to life  
Well it's life, but I'm sure_

_There's gotta be more to life  
Then chasing down every temporary high  
To satisfy me  
Cause the more that I'm  
Tripping out thinking there must be more to life  
Well it's life, but I'm sure_

_There's gotta be more to life  
There's gotta be more to life  
There's gotta be more to life_

TBC

--__

_A/N: I apologize for this chapter. I kind of used it as a filler because it was originally much longer but I decided to split this part up with the upcoming one so it wouldn't be too long. Anyway, I hope no one was disappointed, I promise the next one will be much longer and more detailed.  Btw, the song is There's Gotta Be More To Life by Stacie Orrico. Thank you for all of you who have reviewed so far and I ask that you please continue to do so lol =)_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"_The worst way to miss someone is to have them sitting right next to you, and know that you can never have them_."

_  
_--  
Ash fumbled with the key in his jacket pocket as he and Melody reached the top of the stairway in his building. He felt her latching onto his arm as he tried to unlock the door to his apartment. They eventually succeeded in getting inside and he was relieved at the fact that he could finally sit down and try to forget about the heartache he had previously experienced.  
  
"That was a fun party," Melody announced. Ash nodded mutely, barley taking recognition to her words.   
  
He shook his head to himself, wondering how everything had become so messed up. He had a girlfriend, so why was he even upset about this? In his heart he knew it was wrong for him to continue misleading Melody but she was his only source of comfort, he needed to at least feel loved by someone even if it wasn't the person he wanted to be loved by. It was all just one big mixed up cycle. Melody loved Ash, Ash loved Misty, but Misty loved Rudy. The surrealism of it all, made the entire situation at hand seem like some poorly written soap opera plot.  
  
Ash's musings were interrupted as Melody continued to give her input.  
  
"Misty and Rudy looked so happy," she informed in her usual chipper tone.  
  
"Well, at least someone is," Ash muttered harshly under his breath, too busy wallowing in his own self despair to hold up his end of the conversation.  
  
Melody laughed at what she interpreted as his tired appearance. "Are you a little drunk, sweetie?" she queried impishly and Ash managed a faint nod despite the fact that the few beers he consumed did not have a thing to do with his inner turmoil. "I should have been watching you better," Melody giggled once again. "But me and Tracey were too busy keeping an eye on Brock. It's weird, I've never seen him so wasted before," she finished with a quizzical expression and Ash smirked in disbelief.  
  
"Are you kidding me?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. "We're thinking about sending him to an AA meeting." Melody smiled again at his small joke.  
  
"Well, anyway, getting back to the subject of Misty and Rudy," she began once more and Ash's expression immediately darkened at the sound of the two names together. People were always referring to the both of them at the same time, as if they were one unit. But Ash knew it was impossible for them to complete one another, Misty was twice the person than Rudy would ever be.  "I seriously think they are going to last a long time," Melody went on, interrupting his musings. "I mean, they just look so great together, don't you think?"  
  
He shrugged his shoulders carelessly. "I guess," he mumbled under his breath, casting his eyes toward the floor. The resentment in his tone did not go unnoticed by his girlfriend this time and she immediately knew that his lack of interest in the happy couple was not alcohol induced.  
  
"Uh oh," Melody remarked, eyeing him seriously. "I'm sensing some bitterness in that voice of yours. What's up, what's wrong now?"  
  
"Nothing," he mumbled, fixating his gaze to the ground.  
  
"Ash..." she said, moving closer toward her boyfriend and placing her arms around his neck. "What is it? Come on, you can tell me."  
  
Ash sighed. "It's just.... Misty." As soon as he finished Melody's expression faltered and she removed her arms from their position.  
  
"Oh?" she inquired, trying to sound more concerned than agitated.   
  
"I just really don't think that Rudy is the right guy for her," Ash continued and Melody tried to keep her emotions in check.  
  
"Why?" she asked through clenched teeth.  
  
He shrugged. "I don't know. Misty is so sweet and caring and Rudy is, well, he's not so much, I'll tell you that," he scoffed, letting out a humorless snicker. "I mean, Misty..." Melody felt her irritation reach the breaking point and she could no longer hold back.  
  
"Oh my God!" she exclaimed loudly, averting her gaze from him. "When is this going to end? It's always Misty-this, Misty-that, I mean, enough is enough!" A sense of exasperation and tiredness was added to her tone as she spoke. "It's like you're obsessed with her, she's all you ever talk about!"  
  
"Well, Mel, she is my best friend," Ash cut in harshly.  
  
"I know. And she's my friend too but you don't see me bringing her up in every one of our conversations or feeling the need to mention her when we're having a romantic moment or badmouthing her fiancé every five minutes!" she cried. "Seriously, what is your problem? Are you jealous or something?" Neither own of them spoke and Melody's mouth went agape as a realization dawned over her. "Oh my God, you're jealous..."  
  
"No!" Ash interrupted her, once again denying a very truthful fact. "Why?" He let out a forced laugh to try and convince her so. "Why would I be jealous?"  
  
"I don't know, why don't you tell me? I mean, it's pretty obvious don't you think? You're not over her."  
  
"Mel, there was never anything between Misty and me..."  
  
Melody was the one to interrupt this time. "Yeah, but you wish there had been," she concluded. "And it's pretty clear that you still love her."  
  
Ash sighed. "Mel, no I don't, I love you," he forced himself to say, although, he secretly was thinking the exact opposite.  
  
"Do you? Or am I just a substitution so you can try and get your mind off of what you can't have?" she queried weakly and Ash no longer found the strength to deny what she had surprisingly figured out to her somewhat ditzy personality.   
  
Melody exhaled strongly, pulling her jacket back around her. She approached Ash with a sincere expression on her face. "Look, I'm sorry that I'm not her and that I couldn't give you what you needed. But as a friend, can I give you a little piece of advice?" Her question was obviously not one that was meant to be answered because she began to speak before Ash could even get a word or a nod in. "Move on," she stated bluntly. "You seriously need to. Because no other woman is ever going to settle for being second place next to what you never got."   
  
Ash still did not say anything, forcing himself not to listen to her words although he had heard them numerous times from many different people lately. He couldn't move on, because moving on would be giving up... and as long as he was still living and breathing, Ash would never give up a chance to make Misty his own.  
  
Melody watched as her now ex-boyfriend became deep in thought and she shook her head, naturally assuming who he was thinking about. She leaned up and pressed a kiss on his cheek as a sign of closure. "I'll see you at the wedding," she told him quietly before making her exit.  
  
Ash watched her departing figure and listened as the door slammed behind her. He sighed heavily, raking a hand through his hair and forcing not to let any of the tears that threatened fall. He did not understand why he would cry now. Melody had been fun to be with, but it was not as if he had lost very much along with her, he had already known that their relationship could never last. He then shook his head to himself, frustrated. He knew why he was so upset, it wasn't because he had just lost Melody, it was because she had just reminded him of everything he did not want to face.  
  
Ash glanced around his apartment, suddenly feeling more alone than ever. He couldn't be in this place for any longer, Melody's blunt words of reality came shooting back to him and he had to do everything in his power to block them out. He needed something that made him happy even it was just for a little while and even if he could not possess it. And with that fact, Ash grabbed his keys and exited his apartment, driving his car in the direction of the Cerulean gym.

--  
The car door to Rudy's sleek convertible slammed shut after it had come to a complete stop in front of the Cerulean gym. Misty gazed up at her fiancé as they retreated from the vehicle and began to walk down the path leading toward the gym.  
  
"I had fun tonight," she lied, while resting her head on his shoulder. She looked up at Rudy, waiting for him to response in agreement but he said nothing, he was simply staring off into space like he had something more important on his mind. "Rudy?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I had a great time too, baby," he replied somewhat distractedly as he placed a kiss on her head before he returned to his pensive state.  
  
"So, you know..." Misty began. She stopped in her path and turned to face him. "Lily went home with the waiter and if I know my sister I won't be hearing from her until late tomorrow morning," she snickered slightly. "We have the whole place to ourselves." 

Rudy smiled lewdly. "So what you're saying is you want us to have some quality _alone_ time?" Misty rolled her eyes incredulously. Why was it that everything she said to Rudy, he immediately interpreted it as something with a sexual reference? She had honestly wanted to sit down and talk with Rudy, if she was going to have to spend the rest of her life with him she might as well start to try and stand him a little bit.

"Yeah," she responded flatly. "Some quality time with our clothes on that is," she clarified in an annoyed tone of voice and Rudy immediately cringed at his misinterpretation of what she had been implying.  
  
"Oh, I know," he chuckled in a somewhat forced tone. "Look, babe, I would love to, _believe me_," Misty frowned for a moment at what seemed to be sarcasm on his part, "but I have this big work thing back at my apartment to do tonight."  
  
"Oh," she responded flatly, unable to find any other response. 

Rudy leaned down and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "Rain check?" he questioned. Before Misty even had a chance to respond he was walking back down the pathway and into his car.  
  
"Okay, sure," she finally answered as his car was driving away. "That's what you always do anyway," she added under her breath.

Misty shook her head to herself. It wasn't the fact that she would not be able to spend the night with Rudy that bothered her; it was the fact that _he_ was the one rejecting her. Misty's feelings about Ash riddled her with guilt so she always felt too bad for rescheduling plans with him. He, however, had no problem with it, and that was what pissed her off to no end. She needed to be the one in control of the relationship; she wanted to be the one that Rudy had to create his schedule around. Deep down, she knew it was a stupid reason and very wrong, but still, with everything that was going on, Misty needed to feel that she had _some_ control in her life.

A sigh escaped her lips as she made her way down the long pathway that led up to the gym. She stopped several feet in front of the entrance when she noticed a person sitting on her doorstep, his/her identity unknown due to the shadows of the night. She took a step closer and a quizzical expression formed on her face as she was able to decipher who it was.  
  
"Ash?" Misty inquired upon making out the figure. He lifted his head up, confirming her statement, and she immediately approached him. "What are you doing here?"  
  
Ash sighed. "Oh, nothing, I just needed someone to talk to."  
  
She offered a weak smile and plopped a seat next to him on the step. "Well, that's what I'm here for," she told him cheerily. "What's going on?"  
  
"Melody and I broke up," he found himself saying.  
  
"Oh, honey," she muttered sympathetically. She reached over and stroked his arm affectionately. "I'm sorry." Ash waved his hand, indicating that she had no reason to apologize.  
  
"Don't be. I was actually the one who ended things with her."  
  
Misty looked confused. "What? Why?"  
  
"I don't know," he mumbled, running a hand through his hair. "I just didn't see us having a future," he informed, pleased that his answer at least held some recognition to the truth within it.  
  
"And you just realized this now?" she inquired with a raised eyebrow. "I mean you had been with her for a while."  
  
He shrugged his shoulders aimlessly. "I guess," he replied in a somewhat tired tone. "Everything has just been really screwed up lately, you know?" he asked, sighing longingly. Misty averted her eyes toward him sympathetically, although not understanding that he was referring to his heartache over her engagement rather than his breakup.  
  
"Ash, don't beat yourself up about this," she told him gently in a comforting tone. "There's somebody else out there for you."  
  
_I know, I'm sitting right next to her_, Ash thought to himself bitterly at the same moment that Misty wished that she could apply to her last comment. He sighed heavily, raking a hand through his hair. "Yeah, right," he mumbled under his breath.  
  
Misty stared at him sympathetically for a moment before speaking. "Hey," she said, taking a grasp of his left hand with her right. "You know, you've always got me."  
  
"Do I?" Ash interrupted softly, bringing his gaze to meet her's. "I'm not going to have you for much longer, Myst. Soon you'll be married, having kids, and you and Rudy will have to move out of the city to be near a Volvo dealership or something," he muttered and Misty managed a slight laugh at his conclusions of her future.  
  
"Okay, number 1; I would never drive a Volvo," she bluntly stated, causing Ash to crack a smile. "And number 2," she went on in a more serious tone. "What are you talking about? What happened to everything you said to me? What happened to our promise to always be a part of each other's lives?" she asked weakly.  
  
Ash sighed. "I don't know," he responded in a somewhat tired tone while stretching his legs across the steps. "Everything is just changing so much..."  
  
"Yeah, but we won't change," she interrupted. "You and me always," she spoke, quoting what he had said to her in the car. "Remember?"  
  
He hesitated for a moment before responding and letting his previous thoughts vanish for the moment. "I remember," he spoke, while entwining his fingers with her hand which was still holding his own.  
  
Misty grinned. "Well, good," she said softly. She inched closer to him and moved her free hand to rest on his arm. "And don't you forget it," she reminded him in a playful tone, while adding a slight laugh.  
  
Ash stared at her for a moment, astounded by her beauty as well as the kindness she was displaying toward him. The moonlight flickered off her angelic face, leaving an illuminating glow on her gorgeous features. They were in the perfect romantic setting, sitting at night just intimately talking with one another. Had this been a made-for-television movie, Ash would have admitted his undying love of her and she would have returned it, forgetting all about the man she was to wed. But this wasn't fiction, [[**_A/N: Yeah, okay, lol_]] this was real life. His feelings would not be returned and all that could result was awkwardness between him and Misty as well as Rudy, and a loss of the friendship that they had so intently spoken of with one another. But still, he could not sit there and say nothing, so instead he said the words he had been rehearsing for so long, leaving out the essential parts which would confirm his love for her.  
  
"You are incredible," he stated and Misty blushed slightly at his blunt compliment. "Really," he assured, having noticed her modestly dismiss the comment with a wave of her hand. "You've been such an important part of my life, Myst," he continued. "The most important for that matter. I know the circumstances of our meeting were entirely by accident, but that had to have been the best accident I ever made because had I not, I would have never of met you." Her smiled widened as he continued, touched by his heartfelt words. "What we have goes beyond friendship, Misty, beyond everything, it's... forever."  
  
Misty stared at him intently for a moment, taking deep consideration into his words of comfort and tenderness. A profound sigh escaped her lips as she leaned over and embraced him in a hug, a gesture which he immediately accepted.  
  
"God..." Ash murmured as he wrapped his strong arms around her, breathing in her sweet scent and running his fingers through her silky hair. A sudden thought entered his mind as he recalled how his actual confession of his devotion to her was supposed to end. He hesitated for a moment; taking consideration into what he was about to say and what kind of reaction she would have to it. In the end, he found himself no longer to hold back and he spoke his next words, words which she would interpret in regard to their friendship and when he meant their actual meaning. After taking a deep breath, Ash found himself saying those words with as much emotion as he could.  
  
"I love you, Misty."  
  
She froze as soon as the statement left his mouth. She felt her chest tighten as well as her hold on him did and her breath get caught in her throat. Those simple morsels of speech had such a strong impact upon her for they were what she had so desperately been dying to hear for years on end. Never directly had Ash told her that he loved her, he said he loved things about her or loved spending time with her but never did he say that he actually loved_ her_. Half of Misty felt overjoyed but the other half was filled with overwhelming sadness. It was clearly obvious that he had spoken the words in a friendly manner and not in the romantic way she wished he had meant them. And that fact pained her more than anything, that she had gotten what she wanted but not the way she wanted it. However, Misty still managed the only applicable response, unbeknownst to Ash that her reply meant more than friendship.  
  
"I... I love you too, Ash."**

TBC  
--

_A/N: Well, one couple broken up, only one more to go before everything is hopefully worked out ;).  I hope you liked this chapter, the next one will be up shortly, please review =)_


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**  
  
"_If we don't take the risk for love... than what do we take it for?"__ -Elisabeth Harnois, Charmed_

  
--

"Pink or yellow, Myst?" Lily asked her sister while turning around and holding up two bridesmaid dress samples to Misty. However, the bride to be was oblivious to all around her. She sat at the kitchen table of the Cerulean gym, coffee clutched in hand and her head filled with deep musings.   
  
"Personally, I think you should go with the pink," the older sister continued, not caring that Misty did not answer. "I honestly don't care what Daisy says. Yellow is so... blah. Pink is more wedding-y. And plus I don't do yellow, so we're going with the pink," She smiled as she made the decision regarding her sister's wedding without even her consent. "Misty?" Lily inquired, after having finally noticed that her sister was not responding to any of her suggestions as she appeared to be deep in a train of thought. "Myst?" she repeated and still got no response. "Honey, I am standing here with a bridal magazine in my hand and I'm bored," she informed exasperatedly in a more loud tone.  
  
"Huh?" Misty asked obliviously, at last noticing she was being spoken to. "Oh, I'm sorry, what were you saying?" she queried halfheartedly while self consciously running her hand through her locks.  
  
"Hey, are you okay?" Lily questioned upon hearing her distracted tone while she sat down next to her sister.  
  
"Yeah," Misty sighed. "I've just got a lot on my mind now."  
  
"Thinkin' about Rudy?" she asked mischievously while flashing a knowing smile. Misty hesitated before willing herself to meet Lily's gaze and answer the question.  
  
"Um, actually, I was thinking about... Ash," she admitted and the surprise was evident in her sister's expression.  
  
"Ash?" she inquired. "What about him?"  
  
"He, um, he kind of told me that… he loved me last night," Misty found herself saying and Lily's blue eyes widened at the piece of information.  
  
"What?  Oh my God," she exclaimed, bringing her hand to her chest in shock. "Oh God, this is huge," she cried once more in the same stunned tone.  
  
"No, Lil, he didn't mean it like that," Misty hastily reassured her and she began to calm down a bit. "He was at the gym last night after the engagement party and when he said it. He broke up with Melody and it was just like a friendly 'I love you.' Not an 'I want to spend the rest of my life with you' 'I love you'," she explained.  
  
"Oh," Lily managed to say in a much less incredulous tone. "Well, then what's the big deal about that?" she chuckled. "Why are you freaking out about a friendly 'I love you'?"  
  
Misty bit her lip and took a moment to debate whether or not she should admit the thought that had been on her mind for hours. She eventually decided to take the risk and after exhaling heavily she uttered the words; "Because I was sorta wishing that he meant it as more than a friend." Lily's mouth went agape and the same shocked features returned to her face.  
  
"Misty," she began seriously.  
  
"Honey, look, I know..." she started to protest.  
  
"No, you don't know!" Lily exclaimed, abruptly interrupting her younger sister. "Myst, if you haven't completely forgotten... Ash is not the one you are marrying in two months."  
  
"Lily..."  
  
"No, no, no, I speak... you listen," Lily firmly cut her off leaving her no other choice than to listen to what she had to say. "You cannot do this, okay? You cannot let your feelings for Ash resurface again, especially not now when you're engaged to someone else. If you do than everything is just going to become one big mess," she finished gently and Misty hung her head downcast slightly.  "Sweetie, I understand how hard it must have been for you to be in love with him all of those years and never gain up the courage to tell him. But it's too late for all of that now. He's moved on with his life... and I thought you had too?" she questioned softly toward the end.  
  
"I have," Misty tried to reassure her feebly. "It was just..." she trailed off letting a sigh escape her lips. She could feel Lily's eyes penetrating her back and she knew there was no way her sister could understand this situation. "It was just a momentary lapse," she found herself saying, although that was not how she intended on finishing her sentence. "I just got caught up in the moment. I don't have feelings for him anymore. I love Rudy," Misty forced herself to say, trying as hard as she could to convince herself as the fact as well but with no avail. She cleared her throat and willed herself to go on. "Really, I do."  
  
"Okay..." Lily answered in a slightly skeptical tone after a beat of silence. "But you better really mean that, because if you don't this will just turn into one huge love triangle that no body will be able to get out of."  
  
Misty let out a little laugh. "Well, I certainly don't want that."  
  
"Good. And don't worry; I have an idea on how to make sure that Ash is well occupied so nothing will get screwed up."  
  
She looked at her sister confusedly. "How so?"  
  
"I'll go out with him," Lily answered promptly.  
  
Misty felt her chest tighten and her brain suddenly go on alert. Lily? Go out with Ash? The absurdity of the suggestion was obviously not a concern to her sister who seemed pleased at the fact she had come up with the supposedly 'good idea.' The thought of seeing Ash with someone else killed her, which was why she clung to Rudy that whole time he was with Melody. But the thought of him with her sister? It wouldn't just drive her insanely jealous; it actually grossed her out a bit. She knew exactly the way Lily was and the thought of them together in any sexual situation was something she found quite disturbing.  Misty visibly shuddered at her previous thought.  
  
"W-What?" she stammered. "You and Ash?"  
  
"Why not? He's cute, he's sweet, he's a fun guy," Lily shrugged nonchalantly until a knowing look came on her face. "Unless you don't want me to..."  
  
"What?" Misty asked once again, her voice raising an octave higher at the accusation. "Why..." she let out a forced laugh. "W-Why would I not want you to go out with Ash? I-I'm engaged to Rudy, I don't have a problem with it." She forced herself to giggle again and took a large gulp of her coffee as she did so.  
  
"Well, that's great," Lily chirped, clasping her hands together. "I'll call him later and we can double with you and Rudy."  
  
"Um, Lil..." Misty started, becoming a little agitated by her sister's confidence that Ash would definitely accept her invitation. "No offense, but how do you know he'll even say yes? I mean he just broke up with his girlfriend last night..."  
  
"So, he's looking for someone new," she reminded her and Misty looked somewhat annoyed at her sister's 'plan' to distract her best friend to prevent the looming attraction she had for him.  "Oh, yay!" Lily squealed clasping her hands together.  "The four of us are going to have so much fun when we go out," she exclaimed and her sister plastered a fake grin on her face.

"Yup," Misty smiled sarcastically, sipping her coffee. "Can't wait."  
-- 

Ash sat in his office at the League's location in Cerulean, desperately trying to concentrate on the task he had been assigned but with no avail. He was supposed to be looking over the rules for the upcoming Johto tournament but instead he found his mind only filled with the thoughts of Misty and what had happened between them the previous night.  
  
He could have sworn that there was something going on between them when they each uttered those special words. Of course they had both assumed the other had spoken them in a friendly manner, but Ash had not meant them that way. He had meant the true meaning of love with every bit of his heart and soul.  He never had directly said those words to Misty before in all their years of friendship and he simply could not wait any longer to say them... even if she did not interpret his inward feelings or return them.  
  
But there was something else that had happened. After he had said 'I love you' he had felt Misty's grip on him tighten and her breathing momentarily stop. If she had thought he had just spoken them with no real meaning than why had she hesitated when she answered? What was the big deal if she did not feel that way about him, she could have responded without the thought of the statement meaning something more. That was unless she was secretly wishing that the words had not been spoken in the way they were. Ash shook his head to himself furiously at the thought. It was impossible. Misty did not feel that way about him and she never would and no matter how much it killed him, it was just something he was going to have to accept.  
  
His musings were suddenly interrupted by a knock on the ajar door. Ash looked up to find Lance of the Elite Four entering with a thoughtful expression on his face.  
  
"Hey, Ash," he greeted him while he stepped into the office. Ash acknowledged his presence with a simple wave of his hand. "You got a minute? There's something I need to talk to you about."  
  
"Uh, well, yeah, sure," he answered while gesturing for him to take a seat in the chair on the other side of the desk. Lance did so and Ash looked over at him with quizzical eyes. "What's up?"  
  
"As I'm sure you are aware of, the tournament in Johto is coming up in a couple of months."  
  
Ash nodded. "That's right."  
  
"And ever since you became a master you've been running and battling in the tournaments in Kanto, correct?"  
  
Ash nodded once more. "Uh huh."  
  
"Okay," Lance concluded toward himself. "You see, Ash, as a master you are required to compete as well as run all the tournaments that take place within the League." Again, Ash nodded. "Now, this isn't a problem in the Orange Islands considering we have many locations in there but it has come to my attention that you have not spent much time in the Johto region. Now, it is not completely necessary that you go over to Johto to work there for a while but it is highly recommended by myself as well as the other League members. Part of your responsibility of being a master is being in charge of all aspects of the Pokemon world so I want to you to seriously take in consideration, Ash..." Lance paused before continuing. "... of moving to Johto for a while."  
  
Ash sat there in silence; trying to absorb the information he had just been given. He observed Lance's serious expression and began to try and comprehend of exactly he was asking of him. Leaving the Kanto region and moving to Johto... that was something Ash could not rule out as possible. Sure in his early years he would have jumped at the opportunity to travel across a new land both that was back in his journey days. He was now an adult, his dream had been achieved, he had settled in a city which was right by near his friends, family, as well as his career. He could not picture leaving all of that behind for work related purposes.  
  
"Lance," Ash finally spoke. "I'm not sure..."  
  
"Look," the older man interrupted him. "I'm not saying you have to decide right now but I do need an answer as soon as possible."  
  
Ash sighed. "When would you have to know by?"  
  
"Well, the flight to Johto departs from Celadon and since the train from Cerulean goes directly to that airport, you might wanna do that instead of taking a cab.  But the plane leaves some time towards the end of the week."  
  
His eyes widened. "What?! This week?!"  
  
"Actually, I would need to know in a couple of days," he informed and Ash put his head in his hands, unable to deal with such an important decision so fast. "I know it's a little soon," he admitted and Ash let a sarcastic smirk of agreement escape his lips. "But I just found out about this today and I really do think you should go through with this, Ash. After all, it is part of your job."  
  
"How long would I have to stay for?" he queried weakly.  
  
"As long as you need to.  But you'd have to be there for at least five to seven months."  
  
Ash sighed once more. "All right, I'll think about it," he informed much to Lance's excitement. "I'll get back to you as soon as I can."  
  
The Elite Four member smiled. "Thanks, Ash," he said before he left the room.  
  
Ash exhaled strongly as soon as he left. Had this been several months ago, when Misty was not engaged to another man and when his life made a little bit of sense he would have denied the offer right on the spot. But that was all in the past and this was the present.  Now things were different.  Now he had to sit by and watch as Misty made the countless preparations for the dreaded day that would unite her and Rudy for all eternity.  Now he had to experience the terrible heartache every time he saw the two of them together.  Now he was slowly losing Misty and there wasn't a thing he could do about it.  Now his life had absolutely no meaning.  And because of those reasons, along with all that had happened, Ash realized that Lance's request might not be so crazy after all.

TBC  
--


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"_Don't wait for the one you can live with, wait for the one you can't live without."_

--

The loud music beat fiercely and pulsated against the eardrums of all those who were located in the club.  It was a busy night with dozens of people all over the place, drinking, dancing, sitting, etc.  Throughout all of the commotion around him, Ash was able to be completely in depth with his own thoughts as he gazed at the three people who were amongst the table he was seated at.

He felt Lily go to stroke his arm and reached for his beer as an excuse to move away from her.  He shook his head to himself, feeling more out of place than ever before.  Here he was out on a date with the sister of the woman he secretly loved, as well as herself and the man she was marrying.  Lily had briskly strode in his office a couple of days ago, asking that he go out with her the upcoming weekend which he felt like was more of a demand than a question.  Ash, being the polite guy that he was did not have the heart or courage to turn her down so he reluctantly went along with it, silently wondering what provoked this woman to develop a sudden attraction to him.  It really did not make any sense in Ash's mind.

It was not as if he didn't like Lily.  She was a very fun person to be around, but in his opinion... she was a little too fun.  Her more than obvious gestures did make him slightly uncomfortable and a tad grossed out.  This was Misty's _sister he was going out with.  They were way too alike in so many ways, personality and appearance wise.  Both sisters had the pale skin, big blue eyes, and bright hair and if someone had not known better they could have been mistaken for twins.  Each of them had that determined, stubborn personality which Ash was very much drawn to.  But of course they had their differences.  _

Lily was about a million more times superficial than Misty ever could be and more forward.  Her comments and not-so-subtle motions were hinting and provocative much like her personality was; a fact that she was very well aware of.  Although, Misty did have a natural promiscuous side which was evident in every woman, especially one of the Waterflower family, she did not usually act on it except for several times in the past which Ash had all considered a lapse of her better judgment.  They each had their similarities they were two very different people.  And Ash found himself pathetic at the fact that he was only attracted to the parts of Lily that could be compared to her sister.

"So..." Misty continued to speak, disrupting Ash from his current musings and making him aware of the fact that he was still in their presence.  For about an hour or so the four of them had engaged in nonchalant conversation, informing one another of stories of the past.  Misty had the most to tell considering she had a very close relationship with Ash, Rudy, and Lily and she was currently telling her sister and fiancé one of the many tales that she and her best friend had experienced during their years of traveling.  "It turned out that the 'Chosen One'..."  Misty made air quotes with her fingers as she went on.  "...was actually Ash himself.  And a couple of lifesaving moves, legendary Pokemon, and songs later the world was saved."  She displayed a cheeky grin and popped the olive for her martini into her mouth.

"Wow," Rudy commented in response.  "That's impressive."

Ash forced a grin.  "Uh, thanks," he replied politely.

Lily smiled coyly and moved her chair closer towards Ash's, running a hand down his chest.  "Definitely impressive," she repeated in a sultry tone.  Rudy smirked at the scene before him and Misty moved her gaze downward, unable to handle watching such a thing.

Ash displayed an awkward laugh and stretched his arms high above his head, trying to move himself away from her.  "Whew, it is like an inferno in here," he remarked, hoping to change the subject while fanning himself for effect.  "You guys think so?"  Misty and Rudy shook their heads and Lily inched her way closer to him again.

"I think the only thing hot in here is you," she murmured seductively.

"Mm, that's good," he stammered uncomfortably.  "Thank you very much, heh."

"So, Ash, how's everything in the League going?" Rudy spoke up.  "Life as a master treating you well?"

Ash managed a smile, thankful for the escape.  "Everything's going good, a little hectic with the upcoming tournament and all but still things are under control.  I'm right where I should be in my position."  He paused for a moment, contemplating whether or not he should inform them of his next fact.  "Actually, uh, funny story.  The other day, Lance, of the Elite Four, came into my office and told me that..." Ash trailed off, unable to continue for some reason.  He saw Misty's face contort in confusion as he did not finish his sentence.

"Told you what?" she questioned.  Ash bit his lip, quickly making the decision of not to bring up a topic that he would much rather discuss in private.

"Nothing," he spoke, waving his hand dismissively.  "It's not important."

Misty stared at Ash, unsure, for a moment but soon gave in and believed his information was actually nothing she needed to know.

"I have to go to the bathroom," Lily suddenly announced, finding it necessary to share it with everyone at the table.  Misty noticed her sister shooting her a look, obviously trying to tell her something in silence.  She took the hint and stood up to accompany Lily, inwardly dreading the gushy details about Ash she knew her sister would force her to listen to.

"We'll, uh, be back in a sec," Misty informed the two men still sitting.

Lily blew Ash a kiss before coyly murmuring; "Don't miss me too much."  Ash displayed another awkward chuckle and let out a relieved sigh as they headed in the other direction.

"Ah, sisters," Ash found himself muttering to break the ice as soon as Misty and Lily were out of sight.  He turned toward Rudy and tried as hardest to make pleasant conversation.  "Thank God, I never had one."

Rudy smirked in agreement.  "Consider yourself lucky, dude," he remarked, thinking back to Mahri's more annoying times.

"Uh huh," Ash mumbled, finding no other response.  He took a sip of his beer and shifted somewhat uncomfortably.  He would have much gladly preferred Lily hanging all over him than this.  The last thing he wanted was to be alone with the man who would get to spend the rest of his life with the woman that he wanted to.  It brought Ash's jealousy to a broiling point and he had to contain himself from allowing his envy to filter through.

"So..." Ash started, trying to desperate find something to fill the awkward silence.  "Only a couple of months until the big day, huh?" he queried, inwardly asking himself on why he had chose to bring up the topic that killed him to speak of.

Rudy nodded, leaning back in his chair.  "Yup."

"Are you excited?"

"Yeah, Misty's paid her dues, been with me long enough. I owe it to her to get married."

Ash frowned at Rudy's last statement, not pleased with his reply.  "Plus, you know, you probably, uh, you wanna get married," he tried to remind him, hoping that was what he had meant to say.

Rudy shrugged aimlessly.  "I don't wanna break up," he simply responded, and the frown on Ash's face deepened.  

He watched the other man for a moment, pensive thoughts that had never occurred to him before running through his mind.  He noticed as Rudy's gaze shifted over to a buxom brunette, who was leaning over a table, her skirt way too short and tight for anyone's standards.  Ash could not ignore Rudy's lingering stare and decided to gather more information on what he was beginning to suspect.

"Wow," Ash muttered, forcing an expression usually only seen on Brock's face to form on his own.  He moved his own eyes in the direction in which Rudy was staring at the other woman.  "Nice, huh?" he queried in a vulgar tone.

Rudy smirked, nodding his head lewdly in agreement.  "Oh, yeah."

"You know it really sucks," Ash remarked causing him to look over confusedly.  "The way everything ends.  Once you're married, the fun is all over."

He snickered, shaking his head to himself.  "Speak for yourself, man," he laughed.  "I've had lots of fun."

Ash raised an eyebrow.  "Well, yeah, like three years ago when you were single."

A mischievous smile formed on Rudy's face and he lowered his voice to the point where Ash had to strain to hear him over the music.  "Try three days ago."

Ash stared at him for a moment, unsure if he had heard him right.  "W-What?  Three_ days_ ago?" he asked stressing the 'days' part.  Rudy just nodded in agreement with a proud expression on his face.  Ash observed him in shock before asking the dread question.  "What about Misty?"

"What about her?" Rudy shrugged aimlessly and once again the other man was stunned into silence.  "She's too wrapped up in the wedding to even notice what's going on."

"You're not planning to keep doing this after you still marry her... are you?"

"Why not?" he asked with another shrug.  "Look, Ash, I know you and Misty are real close, but as a guy, you have to understand where I'm coming from.  I mean, be with only_ one_ woman for the rest of my life?" He let out a snicker at what he interpreted as absurdity.  "Come on, who the hell would want that?" he continued to laugh.

_Me_, Ash inwardly answered to himself immediately.

"I mean, it's not as if I don't care about Misty, I do," Rudy continued.  And besides, everything is better off if she doesn't know.  Everything will just stay the same as it is now even after the wedding," he shrugged nonchalantly and took a sip of the beer in his hand.

Ash stared at him blankly, his expression holding one of disgust and disbelief.  He could not comprehend what he was hearing at the moment and how casually Rudy spoke of cheating on Misty.  He had to physically restrain himself from jumping up and beating the living crap out of him right then and there.  He managed to regain composure and cleared his throat to carry on the conversation.

"How the hell do you do it?" Ash asked, questioning the other man on how his conscious could handle being so deceitful, not about how he could do it without getting caught.

Rudy smirked, thinking that Ash was impressed with his clever tactics.  "Easy, man.  I've got years of practice of practice under my belt."

Ash could do nothing but stare at Rudy with his mouth agape, his mind a whirlwind of utter shock.  Just then, Misty and Lily returned toward the table.

"Back," Lily informed them of the obvious fact.

Misty forced a smile and tried to ignore the annoyance running through her veins.  Like she suspected the only reason her sister dragged her to the restroom was to reapply her makeup and blabber about how well everything was going between her and Ash and how she planned to spend the night with him.  Misty cringed at the last thought and tried to put it behind her.  She then turned to Ash and Rudy.  "So did the two of you learn a little more about each other while we were gone?" she asked in a somewhat hopeful tone.

Ash nodded, with his eyes still wide.  "Oh yeah," he answered.  He let a heavy sigh escape his lips as he took a large swig of a beer.  "I've learned more than I ever wanted to know."

--

Ash kept his gaze fixated on the ground as he dragged his feet up the pathway to the Cerulean Gym.  His mind was a whirlwind of immense shock and anger for he was trying to process what Rudy had so carelessly informed him of not too long ago.  

He still could not believe what he had heard and especially how nonchalantly Rudy referred to it, like taking complete advantage of Misty was no big deal.  He had absolutely no idea how lucky he was, because to Ash he had the perfect woman to be his wife and yet he just neglected that fact and went around not being appreciative of what few were fortunate to have.  There was one thing he could not stand, other than seeing Misty with someone else was having that someone else being unfaithful to her.  She deserved only the best and even if she wasn't with him, Ash wanted her to be with someone who would even love her with a fraction of what he felt for her.

He was so deep in his pensive thought that he did not even notice Lily, who was hanging onto his arm and expressively explaining some topic to him which he had absolutely no idea of.  He turned down toward her suddenly, a semi-quizzical expression on his face which formed with the wondering which caused him to ask his next question.

"So, Lily, what do you think of this Rudy guy?" he inquired, curious to know what she thought of her future brother-in-law and if she had any idea of what he was doing behind her sister''s back.  "You think he's trustworthy?"

"Yeah," she replied in her usual chipper tone.  "At least, he better be."

"Yeah," Ash scoffed under his breath, shaking his head to himself.

"But, you know, who cares about Rudy?" she asked with a shrug of her shoulders.  "You know who I keep thinking about?"

"Who?" he asked somewhat warily.

Lily took a step closer toward him and moved her lips so they were breathing right into his ear.  "You," she whispered in a sultry tone.  Ash shifted uncomfortably and forced a laugh, moving away from her slightly.

"Um, th-thanks," he found himself spluttering out and Lily had to smirk at his obvious awkwardness.  She raised her eyebrows suggestively and twirled a ringlet of pink hair around her finger.

"So, you know, Misty's staying at Rudy's tonight," she informed him with the same seductive demeanor.

"Oh?" Ash inquired, trying to desperately avoid her obvious tactics.

Lily sighed.  "Look, Ash.  I know that you're shy and I know you've been hurt.  So I'm going to make this really easy on you, okay?"  Again, she approached him and allowed her lips to linger in the position near his ear while she ran her hands down his chest.  "If you come inside... you're going to be one very happy camper."

At this point Ash had gone beyond uncomfortable to completely freaked out.  Had this been another person and had he had not been informed of such disturbing news beforehand, he most likely would have been aroused by the situation and his male ego would be quite pleased by how forward the woman was being.  But there was no way in hell he could imagine sleeping with Lily.  She was very attractive, he'd admit but there was no way he could be with Misty's sister that crept him out way too much.

"W-Wow," he stammered, scratching the back of head like he always did when he was embarrassed.  "No one's ever been that forward with me before," he managed to laugh and Lily had to smile at his innocence.  "Um, I just, I'm telling you my head's kind of a mess right now," he told her, hoping that would cause her to lose interest but was unsuccessful in doing so.

"Honey, your head isn't what really concerns me," she informed with a smirk and Ash turned beet red.

"Heh, yeah," he forced himself to giggle, trying to hide the blush that had furiously colored his cheeks.  "So, Misty's staying at Rudy's tonight, huh?" he suddenly inquired, trying to change the subject as well as get more information about the two of them.

Lily nodded.  "Yeah."

"Does, does she stay over there a lot?" he continued to question, trying to sound more genuinely curious than nosy.

"Uh huh."

"Really?" he asked again, clenching his teeth and allowing some of his jealousy and annoyance to falter through.  "That's... nice," she muttered sarcastically while shoving his hands in his pockets.  Lily's eyes narrowed as she watched his obviously agitated expression, a gasp escaped her lips as a revelation suddenly dawned over her and she began to wonder how she could have never realized it in the past.

"Oh my God," Lily murmured staring at him intently.  "I can't believe I never noticed it before," she continued shaking her head 

Ash stared at her quizzically.  "Noticed what?"

"You have a thing for Misty," she stated bluntly.

"What?" he exclaimed, once again putting on the usual routine of denying his feelings.  "No, I do not have a 'thing' for Misty, okay?  She's my best friend... nothing more, nothing less."  He stuffed his hands in his pockets and cast his gaze down toward the floor as he finished.

"Okay.  I'm sorry, you're right, you do not have a thing for Misty," Lily agreed flatly and Ash became somewhat confused by her suddenly taking his side.  "You're completely and totally obsessed with her."

Ash's head shot up at her last sentence and he opened his mouth to disregard her accusations once more.  "Lily, please, I don't..."

"I must be blind," she exclaimed toward herself incredulously, abruptly cutting him off.  "It's beyond obvious you have feelings for her and I am now really beginning to believe those dozens of people who have called me a ditzy airhead in the past."  Ash made a grunt of agreement at her last statement.  "You love her," Lily continued to conclude what many people who had been in Ash and Misty's presence for a mere few seconds were immediately able to.  "You always have," she went on intensely before a laugh escaped her lips.  "Talk about your classic ironic situation."

"Ironic situation?" Ash finally spoke up upon hearing her last sentence.  "What are you talking about?"

Lily bit her lip to keep herself from blabbing out the same words that her sister had spoken to her earlier.  In her mind, she had two options; to either tell Ash that his emotions for Misty had been mirrored this entire time or to keep her big mouth shut and brush off the comment.  Misty had never told her that she was actually still in love with Ash, she just said that her feelings for him that she had been forced to bury, had risen back up to the surface with what he had said to her.  She did seem happy with Rudy and they were already engaged, the last thing Lily wanted to do was deprive her sister's chance for happiness so she took a deep breath and made the choice of how to respond to Ash.

"Never mind," she shook her head, dismissing the comment before looking up toward Ash again.  "I'm sorry I pushed myself on you," she apologized sincerely.  "But I still had fun tonight, nonetheless."

He forced a smile.  "Sure, me too," he lied.

"Goodnight, Ash," she uttered before moving to kiss him on the cheek.  She turned and began to unlock the door to the gym and Ash spun around and began to walk away.  "Hey!" Lily called out just as he was getting to the sidewalk, causing him to face her again.  "For what it's worth, I think you would have been a much cooler brother-in-law than Rudy any day."

Ash let out a small snicker as recognition to her comment and with a grin Lily closed the door behind her.  He shook his head to himself longingly as he returned his pace down the street.  Lily's impish remark had actually been what he fantasized about all of these years, but in a few mere months, his dreams would be completely shattered beyond repair.

TBC

--

_A/N: Sorry, this took me so long to get up, I've been a little busy lately.  So, the big secret is out, although, I'm sure most of you naturally assumed what it was gonna be ;)  I'm sure you guys have noticed but I did steal a bunch of stuff from the Wedding Singer and inserted it in here, lol, I apologize for the unoriginality.  Hope you enjoyed this chapter, review please =)_


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**  
**"_In this world you are one person, but to one person, you just might be the world."**  
--_   
_**  
"I told you that asshole was bad news, but nooo, nobody listens to me!" Ash exclaimed sarcastically to Brock for the millionth time the next day as he paced back and forth across his apartment. He had recently informed his friend of what Rudy had told him and was becoming more and more surprised by the minute upon noticing that he seemed rather skeptical to believe his story._

"Ash," Brock sighed. "Come on, man, do you really think Rudy would do that? He loves her..."

"No, he doesn't," Ash interrupted. "He loves what she can give him. Okay? All he wants is the perfect wife who will cook and clean while he's off doing other women behind her back."

"Ash, no he doesn't," Brock responded heavily once more. "I know he may not be the nicest guy in the world all the time and the two of you don't get along that well, but you don't have to be making up shit like this..."

"W-W-What?" Ash stammered. "You..." He let out a humorless snicker before asking his best friend of fourteen years incredulously; "You don't believe me?" Brock said nothing; he just simply turned his head to avoid his hurtful gaze. 

He knew that Ash had never lied to him during all of their years of friendship but this was Misty he was talking about. The girl he had been in love with practically forever, it did seem reasonable that he would exaggerate on things that were not the entire truth about her fiancé in an attempt to persuade Brock that the two of them should not be getting married. And although he loved and trusted Ash and only got along fairly well with Rudy, he could not help thinking that what he was being informed of by his old friend was nothing more than a figment of his imagination that he wanted to be true so there would be a reason of why Misty should not marry Rudy.

"It's not that I don't believe you..." Brock started slowly but was abruptly cut off by another gasp of disbelief from Ash.

"Yeah it is, that you don't believe me," he stated and once again Brock did not deny that fact. "Dude, I don't understand this. I'm your best friend, I've never lied to you once and you're gonna believe this scumbag over me?"

"I know you've never lied to me, Ash," the older man blurted out. "But this is a completely different situation. The woman you are in love with is marrying another man, it is possible that this is just something that you _want _to be true, not something that necessarily is..."

"Brock, he fucking told me to my face that he cheats on her!" Ash cursed loudly, anger and agitation growing in each one of his words.

"Isn't it possible that you took it the wrong way?"

"Oh, yeah, because the 'hot chick he was with three days ago' was just a business associate," he muttered sarcastically. Ash raked a hand through his ebony hair as he sat down on the nearby sofa. "I know what I heard, man, and you should know me good enough to get that I don't make mistakes like this."

A beat of silence passed before Brock sighed and moved over to sit next to his distraught friend. "Okay..." he began slowly. "Let's say you're right," he stated in a somewhat unconvinced tone. "What are you gonna do about it?"

"I'll tell you what I'm gonna do about it," Ash exclaimed while standing back up again. "I'm gonna go over to Rudy's and kick his ass!"

Brock rolled his eyes while standing up as well. "Ash, I don't think you getting your ass kicked is going to help the situation at hand." 

Ash shot him a dirty look before speaking again in a more calm tone. "Fine, I'll go and talk to Misty first."

"I don't think that's a good idea..."

"Well, it doesn't really matter what you think, does it Brock?" he inquired in a harsh tone. "This is my problem, my friendship, and my heart that we're dealing with here... not yours," he finished softly.

Brock stared at his friend for a moment before taking a deep breath and moving closer toward him and displaying an affectionate expression trying to show that he was genuinely sorry for the cold harsh reality that he was about to state. "Look, I honestly don't think there is anything going on here, and if you get involved and start making accusations it is just going to create one big problem that will result in someone getting hurt."

"Brock..." Ash muttered in a choked tone while glancing up at him with desperate eyes. He firmly placed both of his hands on his shoulders before speaking toward him in a serious tone.

"I'm sorry that you and Misty never got a chance to be together. I think the two of you would have been an amazing couple. But you have to understand that she's moved on and that she loves someone else. We both know this is the life that she has always dreamed of... do you really want to take away your best friend's chance for happiness?"

Ash didn't respond, although the look on his face was enough to show that he disagreed with the question asked.

"If you really love Misty as much as you say you do, and I know that you do, man, believe me," Brock added toward the end before finishing his statement as gentle as possible to try and soften the bluntness of his next words. "... you'll let her go."

A dreaded moment of silence passed as Ash allowed Brock's words to sink in and register in his mind. The thought seemed unbearable for him to even comprehend. He had tried his hardest to try and come to terms with the fact of Misty winding up with another man, and a part of him was slightly okay with it as long as it was someone who would love and respect her. But to lose Misty to someone who was taking her kind heart and gentle soul for granted was not something he could bear to deal with, no matter how happy she may have been with him.

"I can't," he whispered, shaking his head feebly. Brock stared at him sympathetically before he averted his hurtful gaze from him by turning around and heading for the door. He barely had a chance to reason with his younger friend once more before Ash briskly swung his jacket over the shoulder and exited briskly.  
--

  
Ash took heavy, self-calming breaths as he climbed the stairway of the Cerulean Gym which would lead to Misty's room. Lily had let him inside like normal unbeknownst to the bombshell that was about to be dropped on her younger sister from her best friend about the guy she was marrying. And Ash did not have the slightest idea on how he was going to do his task without breaking Misty's heart in the process.

_Okay, you can do this, just break it to her gently._ He thought to himself but soon realized that it was nearly impossible to try to lighten the heaviness of this situation.

He eventually reached the stop of the steps to where he was standing outside the door. He exhaled strongly once more before gathering up the courage to knock.

"Misty," he called, his voice coming out hoarse and unrecognizable to himself and probably another.

"Wait, no, don't come in here!" she exclaimed from inside of the room much to Ash's puzzlement.

"Okay," he responded confusedly. "But there's something really important I need to talk to you about," he informed her while sighing.

"Ash?" she spoke again from the other side of the door. "Is that you?"

"Yeah?" he half stated/asked in the same stumped tone.

"Oh," she laughed. "Sorry, I thought you were Rudy." Ash clenched his fist angrily at that statement. "Please, you can come in its fine."

With that, he opened the door keeping his eyes fixated on the ground as he struggled to begin with an opening sentence. "All right, I really think you should be sitting down for this..." Ash interrupted himself the minute his eyes moved from the floor up to where Misty was standing. His mouth went agape and he stood there simply speechless in the sight of her in her wedding dress.

It was a simple satin gown with no big, puffy or unnecessary components. Flowers and other intricate designs were sewn into the delicate fabric and it was held up by two thin straps of the same texture. Her hair simply hung loosely having she did not put on her veil or any other articles of clothing that would be worn during the wedding. She just stood there in her dress, looking more gorgeous to Ash than he had ever seen her before.

"Well, what do you think?" Misty asked cautiously upon seeing her friend's stunned expression. Her eyes displayed a hopeful look which seemed to say that she would be lost without his approval.

"You..." Ash managed to stammer. "You're beautiful," he murmured before being rendered speechless once again. Misty was somewhat surprised by his reaction and she still was not sure if he had been taken aback because of her beauty or just because the sight of her in a wedding gown was something he had never witnessed before.

"Really?" she inquired with the same insecure demeanor and Ash nodded in response while moving closer toward her and taking her hands in his.

"Really," he murmured while staring deep into her eyes. Her aqua orbs seemed to light up with happiness for she was, as usual, overwhelmed by a single compliment from him.

"Thank you," she whispered toward him gratefully while wrapping her arms around his neck in a tight hug. Ash returned the gesture, one that he had been drawn into many times before. He breathed in the sweet scent of her strawberry shampoo as let one of his hands rest on a piece of bare, flawless skin. He could have stayed like that forever, especially due to the fact that he was so enticed by Misty, herself, that he had not noticed that she was dressed for the day that she would be indebted toward Rudy for the rest of her life.

They eventually broke apart and he was surprised to see her eyes brimming with tears which he concluded were either purely out of her emotion or what he hoped was the fact that she really wished she would be walking down the aisle to him the day she wore this gown.

"Sorry," she muttered sheepishly, while wiping her eyes and trying to keep her make-up on straight. "I've just been getting emotional over everything lately," she laughed slightly while still struggling to regain her composure. She sniffed and turned up to Ash with a less intense and more quizzical expression. "So, what did you need to tell me?" she inquired and he immediately face-vaulted at the question.

Had it been one minute ago Ash would have instructed Misty to take a seat next to him on the bed and with an apologetic expression before giving her the piece of information as cautiously and softly as he could. But now he felt all morsels of courage regarding the situation at hand disappear and vanish without a trace. 

There was absolutely no way he could will himself to tell Misty while she was standing there in her wedding dress that the man who she would be exchanging vows with when she was wearing it next was one who would be dishonest and not respect her in there future. She seemed too happy and Ash had once told himself that Misty's happiness was more important than his own. He did not want to be the one to break her heart and who knew... maybe Rudy would change his ways and they would end up being truly happy together... despite how miserable Ash was himself.

"Um, nothing," he blurted out. "It's not important, never mind." Ash sighed longingly to himself and Misty simply shrugged.

"Well, okay then," she smiled, walking over to her dresser to remove the earrings that were beginning to bother her. "Hey, are you free tonight?" she inquired randomly while taking off her jewelry.

"Well, let's see," Ash began as he strode over toward her. "I did have an appointment to fall asleep in front of the television with a bucket of fried chicken next to me," he told her impishly. "But I guess I can always reschedule."

Misty giggled. "In that case, would you like to join me for dinner? I actually have something I need to ask you about myself."

Ash shrugged after wondering for a moment of whatever she had to question him about. "Yeah, that sounds fine. How about Francesco's at seven?" he suggested a rather upscale restaurant.

She nodded in agreement and moved over toward him. "Great, so it's a date," she concluded while kissing his cheek before heading in toward the bathroom to change leaving Ash with nothing but his own thoughts.

--

_If you're not the one then why does my soul feel glad today?  
If you're not the one then why does my hand fit yours this way?  
If you are not mine then why does your heart return my call?  
If you are not mine would I have the strength to stand at all?  
  
I never know what the future brings  
But I know you are here with me now  
We will make it through  
And I hope you are the one I share my life with_

_I don't want to run away but I can't take it, I don't understand  
If I'm not made for you then why does my heart tell me that I am?  
Is there any way that I can stay in your arms?_  
_If I don't need you then why am I crying on my bed?  
If I don't need you then why does your name resound in my head?  
If you're not for me then why does this distance maim my life?  
If you're not for me then why do I dream of you as my wife?  
  
I don't know why you're so far away   
But I know that this much is true   
We will make it through   
And I hope you are the one I share my life with   
And I wish that you could be the one I die with   
And I pray in you're the one I build my home with   
I hope I love you all my life_**  
**  
_I don't want to run away but I can't take it, I don't understand  
If I'm not made for you then why does my heart tell me that I am?  
Is there any way that I can stay in your arms?_  
_  
Cause I miss you, body and soul so strong that it takes my breath away   
And I breathe you into my heart and pray for the strength to stand today   
Cause I love you, whether its wrong or right   
And though I can't be with you tonight  
And know my heart is by your side   
  
I don't want to run away but I cant take it, I don't understand  
If I'm not made for you then why does my heart tell me that I am?  
Is there any way that I can stay in your arms?_  
--

Rudy paced back and forth, his shoes hitting the hard wood floor of his apartment in perfect timing and rhythm.  He glanced at his watch decorating his left wrist and anticipation arose up within him again upon noticing that she was five minutes late.  She had agreed to meet him back at his place on his lunch break, but was still confused with the 'important thing' he had refused to discuss with her over the phone.  He had hung up when she agreed, the same prayer ran through his anxious mind.  _Please don't let her talk to Ash._

Rudy mentally cursed himself for the millionth time that day, frustration and anger arising.  What the hell had he been thinking the night before?  Telling Ash of his true nature, blurting it out like they were buddies who understood each other?  He should have kept his big mouth shut and continued to indulge in awkward but polite conversation until Misty and Lily got back from their bathroom trip, but no, he was too goddamned stupid to realize that.  Usually Rudy could hold his liquor well, a few beers didn't get him drunk but did make him extra-talkative.  There were situations in which he would blurt out things he should not have been mentioning at all or reveal secrets that he normally wouldn't even speak of had be not been drinking.  Last night had been one of those situations.

It was beyond obvious that Ash was going to tell Misty what he had been so bluntly informed of sooner or later.  He was perfectly aware of how close the two of them were, being friends for such a long amount of time.  There was no way he was going to sit by and watch her go on with her life oblivious to what was really going on.  Unfortunately, that did not bode well for Rudy who needed his fiancée to be nothing short of completely ignorant of his actions.  He only hoped that Ash had not gotten to her first, revealing the truth and ruining his plans in the process.

The opening of the door interrupted Rudy from his musings and he looked over to see Misty entering.  He immediately approached her, relief washing over his features upon seeing that she was clearly not angry.  She was not going to start throwing things at him while crying and screaming, ripping her engagement ring off her finger with drama only seen in the movies.  She looked the same as she had last night and it was clear that nothing had changed, she still had no idea of Rudy's true nature and he was planning on keeping it that way.

"Hey, baby," he greeted her, trying to act extra nice as he walked over and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

"Hi," Misty answered, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.  "What's up?  You sounded so weird on the phone, what's so important that you had to tell me in person?" she questioned and Rudy decided in his mind that it was best to slowly ease into it and not look suspicious by immediately jumping into his well-rehearsed and carefully detailed dialogue.

"Um, how was your morning?" he inquired and Misty looked at him with a confused expression.  Was Rudy actually asking how _her_ day had been?  Usually she was the one who sat there, listening him to go on and on about the boring events that had happened at his work, desperately trying to tune them out with thoughts of Ash.  He never wondered about what was going on in her life, it was all about _him_ and _his agenda, everything had to be worked around _his_ schedule, Misty was simply a part of his daily routine.  But now, he was curious about what she was up to?  That was most definitely a first, and the shock she experienced was unavoidable._

"Uh, good," Misty finally responded.  "Yeah, I beat two trainers in battle this morning."

"So, you've been at the gym this whole time then?" he queried, his eyes narrowed carefully.  "Y-you haven't talked to anyone but your sister then?"

"Um, actually, Ash came over for a little while," she informed him and Rudy's heart jumped in his chest.

"Well, what happened?" he demanded.  "What did he say?"

"Nothing," Misty replied, surprised as well as confused at his sudden anxiousness.  "We just talked, I'm also having dinner with him tonight, by the way, so I'll have to take a rain check."  A ghost of a smile formed on Rudy's lips.  _Perfect, he thought.  "Why?" she asked, looking at him curiously.  "Rudy, what is going on?"_

Rudy sighed.  "Misty, come here," he said, taking her by the hand and leading her to sit down beside him on the nearby sofa.  "It's about Ash," he spoke up and Misty's full attention was suddenly on him.

"Ash?" she questioned, her voice going an octave higher.  "Wh-what about him?"  She shifted in her seat uncomfortably, fear invading her mind.  Fear that Rudy had realized her feelings for Ash and she was going to wind up alone once again.

"Last night," he began slowly, "when you and Lily went to bathroom last night at the club Ash and I got to talking and," he paused dramatically for affect, "he was saying some pretty weird stuff."

She was taken aback.  "What?  What kind of stuff?"

"I don't know, I was pretty surprised to hear it myself.  He usually seems so levelheaded," Rudy shook his head and Misty watched him with wide eyes, hanging onto his every word.  "But he started telling me how he didn't want you marrying me or anyone else for that matter."

Her breath got caught in her throat and she gripped the cushion she was seated on his her fingers.  "Why was he like jealous or something?" she wondered, trying not to sound so eager.

"Yeah, but it wasn't in like any romantic kind of way," he answered and Misty tried to hide the facevault that involuntarily occurred when her heart sunk.  "It was like, he didn't want you to be married because he wanted you all to himself, like you were his possession or something."

"Well, honey, maybe he's just afraid we're not going to be as close of friends after the wedding," she responded, trying to find a logical explanation.

"That's what I thought at first too but he just kept going on and on about how you were_ his, and that nothing was going to take him away from you, it actually started to get kind of creepy…"_

"Maybe he was just drunk…"

"Misty, he had like two beers all night," he reminded her.  "Anyway, he shut up when you came back but he kept glaring at me all night.  I really thing that he might do something to sabotage our relationship."

Once he had finished, Misty sat there motionlessly, trying to comprehend what she had just been informed of.  The logical part of her tried to think that this had all been a misunderstanding, that Rudy had taken what Ash had told him the wrong way that nothing weird was going on with him.  But then, there was that little voice in the back of her head telling her to look a little deeper.  The same little voice that convinced her to stay with Rudy and also convinced her that her friendship with Ash would be ruined if she ever were to tell him how she really felt.  Was it possible that Rudy was right?  That Ash did think of her as some sort of property and did not want to see her belonging to anyone else?  There past conversations had been more meaningful and deep than usual and consisted of him saying how he did not want to lose her when she was married.  His intentions had seemed genuine with nothing peculiar behind him, but now…

She shook her head to herself, feeling guilty for being allowed to be persuaded by such ridiculous ideas.  She knew Ash better than anyone and she knew what he was like.  He thought of her as his best friend, nothing more, nothing less.  He couldn't possibly have some creepy interpretation of her being _his that he would try and prevent her from getting married especially after how supportive and helpful he had been with everything.  Rudy had clearly been mistaken._

"Misty?" Rudy spoke up and she faced him, upon realizing she had been sitting there in silence for almost a minute.  "Are you okay?"

"Uh, yeah," she managed to answer.  "I'm just a little surprised, that's all."

He made a noise of agreement.  "Believe me, I was too."

"Look, Rudy," she sighed.  "I don't know what Ash told you but you obviously must have taken it the wrong way," she stated.  "I know him."

He sighed, the final part of his speech rapidly approaching.  He had known that she would deny whatever accusations he made about Ash, his only job was to put that idea in her head so it would creep back to her if Ash ever were to reveal the truth.  "You know, it's funny," he began, "how you can think you know a person and find out… that you really have no idea who they are at all."  A shiver ran down Misty's spine at his statement and Rudy tried to hide his satisfaction upon seeing her expression change.  He checked his watch.  "I better be heading back to the office, my break's almost over."  He kissed his fiancée's cheek before standing up and heading back over to the door.  "Bye, babe."  

Misty waved in response before resting her head in her hands, her brain racing with ultimate confusion.  Rudy glanced over his shoulder, saw her obvious distress, and smiled.

TBC

--

_A/N: Wow, Rudy's an asshole isn't he?  Hehe, I was originally going to cut out that last scene but then decided to add it so there would be an actual reason of why Misty could be persuaded not believe in Ash.  I', sure most of you know but the song in there is 'If You're Not the One' by David Bedingfield, I just had the strange urge to add it in there.  Next chapter's a big one, I should have it up within a week or so ;)_

_Also, I wanted to thank everyone who has taken time out of their lives to read and review this story.  I still can't believe I've gotten over 100 reviews!  But, seriously, thank you so much for your words of praise, they really make my day.  Please, keep reading! =)_


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

_"Why do we always go out of our way to hold on to the wrong ones and let the right ones slip right through our fingers?"  
  
_

--

The afternoon wore on and eventually evening came. Ash sat at the table of at Francesco's, dressed nicely for the occasion as well as the formality of the restaurant. He waited patiently and checked his watch; it was only a matter of seconds before Misty was scheduled to meet him. He looked up toward the entrance to find Misty arriving. _Just like her, right on time_, he thought wistfully while standing up to speak to her.

"Hey," she greeted him cheerfully and just like many times before Ash took a longer time to respond for he was taken aback by her beauty. She was wearing a simple navy dress which highlighted her figure very nicely and her hair was worn down like usual, framing her face like perfect picture.

"H-hey," he managed to say while holding his hands out and gesturing for her to take a seat. Misty did so and as she sat, she could not help feeling like they were actually a couple on a date and that this was not just two friends having dinner like they had done many times before. She felt a wave of guilt wash over her, as she secretly wished that the former rather than the latter was the truth.

"Gee, Ash, could you have picked a more expensive place?" she commented after opening her menu and glancing at the rather high prices.

"Doesn't bother me," he shrugged. A somewhat impish grin formed on his face as he spoke his next words. "I am a master, you know."

Misty rolled her eyes. "Like you would ever let me forget."

Just then, their waiter for the evening approached with a pad in his hand which he was prepared to right on with a pencil. "What can I get you guys?"

"Okay," Ash began to speak up for both of them. "For the appetizers can we just get two small salads?" The waiter nodded and wrote down the order on his page. "Oh, and can you make sure to put extra carrots and peppers on her's?" he requested and immediately delivered a hard kick in the shins from under the table.

"Ash," Misty growled through clenched teeth, obviously not amused by his apparent humor.

Ash scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Heh, just kidding," he told the waiter before sinking back down in his chair with a smile, inwardly commenting wittily to himself.  _Nice to see some things never change._  
--  
  


An hour or so later Ash and Misty were just finishing up their dinner, laughing and giggling amongst one another just like the rest of the night had been. Momentarily, Ash had put reality behind them, pushing all thoughts of the wedding and the secrets he had gathered behind him. It was just the two of them, like the good old times. The times they spent around the campfire, gazing intently into one another's eyes and basking in the radiance of the warmth while secretly wishing they could speak the words they each so longed to hear. 

They were impishly indulged in one of their usual playful banters before the waiter came over and placed the check in front of Misty. Her eyes widened as she looked at it.

"Wow," she muttered, while glancing at the price. "Well, this officially cleans out my pockets for the next month," she added, chuckling slightly. Ash displayed a similar glance and being the nice guy he was, reached into his wallet and pulled out his credit card.

"Don't worry, I got it," he offered, while taking the check from her.

"Oh, Ash, I can't..."

"Hey, it's fine," he reassured her while holding a hand up.

Misty smiled. "Always the gentleman, aren't you?" she inquired in a playful tone which Ash grinned at. "Although, Mr. Ketchum, I have been dying to ask... if there is any particular reason of why you took me to this specific restaurant tonight?"

He looked at her, confused by the impish glance she was displaying. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, come on, Ash. don't tell me you don't remember. This was where we had Brock's twenty-first birthday party." Ash nodded at the fact, still not sure why she was reminding him of something he was perfectly aware of.

"So?"

"Ash," Misty muttered, exasperated by his denseness. "Don't you remember? That was the night we almost..." she trailed off, not wanting to further continue due to her embarrassment and hoping he would catch on to what she was insinuating which he thankfully did.

A look of realization formed on Ash's face as the memory dawned on him. That particular night came running back into his mind and he secretly wondered how he ever could have forgotten it. At the party, Ash, as well as Misty had both had a little too much to drink. When they got back home, a heated make out session had occurred due to their drunken states. They had both winded up passing out into an alcohol-induced slumber before anything more could happen. Each awoke with a terrible hangover and an expression of embarrassment when realizing what most likely would have ended up doing.

"Oh yeah..." he groaned as it all came back to him.

Misty chuckled somewhat nervously. "Good thing we both fell asleep, huh?"

_No_, Ash immediately thought, his male pride overtaking his logical thinking of what one night of passion could have possibly done to their friendship. "Yup," he muttered under his breath.

The waiter then came back over and collected the check and money from Ash. "Thank you again for paying," Misty said to him once again.

"Not a problem," he grinned.

"I've just been a little short on cash lately," she continued. "You know with the wedding and all..." Ash's face darkened at the comment but Misty thankfully did not notice it for a revelation had just dawned over her. "Oh, speaking of which, that reminds me of what I had to ask you."

He shrugged aimlessly, prepared for some casual question. "Shoot."

"All right, you're aware of the whole situation with my parents, right? You know, how my father abandoned us right after I was born and I haven't seen him since I was like six months old?" she queried weakly and he nodded in response, silently wondering how she could speak so casually about her tragic past. "Okay. Well, you see I haven't had any contact with him or his family ever and my mother was an only child so I don't have any uncles or anything," she went on and Ash narrowed his eyes, unsure of what she was getting to. "So, I was kind of wondering..." She inhaled strongly before tentatively asking; "...if you could be the one to give me away?"

Misty held her breath, cautiously awaiting his answer. Ash just stared at her blankly, not able to comprehend that she was actually asking this of him. There was no way in the world that he would be able to complete a task that would hurt him more than having to watch her marry someone else. He was supposed to be the one waiting for her at the end of the aisle, not walking her down it.

"Oh, Myst..." he sighed, looking down so he would not have to meet her hopeful gaze. "I don't know..."

"Please," she interrupted him, her eyes displaying an expression which clearly said that she would be crushed if he did not agree to do this. "It would mean so much to me."

Ash hesitated for a moment, unable to find a way to let her down easy when she was so desperately clinging onto his agreement. "Why can't you have Brock do it?" he asked finally.

Misty looked taken aback by his question as well as his refusal to do what she wanted him to. "Because I don't want Brock to do it..." she told him, with a surprised tone in her voice. "...I want you."

He bit his lip and tried his hardest to block out the hurtful visage that was about to move onto her face because of his rejection. "I'm sorry," he apologized, "but I can't."

"What?" She let out an incredulous half-sigh/half-laugh. "Ash, this is very important, why won't you do this for me?"

"I already told you I can't, all right?" he interrupted in a somewhat harsh tone. He stood from the table and moved the napkin off of his lap. "Let's just leave it that," he spoke while walking in the other direction, hurriedly paying the bill and exiting the restaurant leaving a stunned Misty still sitting at the table.

Ash made his way out onto the dark street, walking at an extra fast pace. It wasn't long before he heard Misty scampering to catch up with him, calling his name in the process.

"Ash!" she repeated once more as she struggled to walk at the same pace as him. "What is the matter with you? Why can't you do this?"

"Because it's too much for me to handle, that's why," Ash shot back in response.

"What is there to handle?" Misty questioned in exasperation. "You walk me down the aisle and go to your place. I don't think that's too hard..."

"Yeah? Well, I think it is," he interrupted her as he stopped walking and turned around to face her. "Misty, it's too much for me to handle... emotionally."

She looked at him confusedly. "Okay, Ash, you're gonna have to explain this to me a little better."

He sighed before speaking in a slightly calmer tone. "Look, Misty, I'll do a lot of things for you. I'll help plan your wedding. I'll help pick the florist. I'll give my input on your dress. But to actually be the one that hands you off to another guy... that I can't do." He shook his head toward to himself before muttering the last words under his breath. "Especially when it's a guy who you can do so much better than."

Her eyes narrowed as she overheard Ash's last comment. "What did you just say?"

He ran a hand through his hair and silently prepared to tell Misty what he had been trying to that morning. "All right, here's the deal," he started slowly. "This morning when I came over to your place I actually did have something to tell you." He exhaled heavily and struggled to continue. "I was coming over to tell you not to marry Rudy. Misty, he-he's not the right guy for you. He's not faithful," he told her gently.

"Ash, what are you talking about?" she asked, staring at him in disbelief.

"Myst, believe me, all I want is for you to be happy and I would not be doing this if I didn't have a good reason behind it," he told her seriously. "Rudy told me so himself about how he sleeps with other women does behind your back and about how he plans to keep doing it even after you are married. I'm so sorry to have to let you find out like this. But still its better you know now rather than later."

Misty stood there in silence as soon as Ash had dropped the bombshell on her.  She simply stared at him with an unreadable expression before a heavy sigh escaped her lips.  Rudy's words suddenly came shooting back to her, the little voice in the back of her mind becoming louder and louder, overriding her logical thinking once again.

".._it's funny how you can think you know a person and find out… that you really have no idea who they are at all."_

_No_, she reminded herself.  It wasn't a possibility.  Ash was the opposite of a stranger to her and never had she ever doubted any words he were to speak to her.  However, she found herself being convinced, slowly but efficiently and her mind drifted back toward her and Rudy's little conversation that afternoon.  It actually _did_ make sense when she took it into perspective.  Rudy had told her what Ash had supposedly said the night before and here he was doing exactly what her fiancé said he would.  Ash was protective of those he cared about, and she had witnessed before what lengths he would go to in fear of losing them.  Maybe, her marriage was sending insecurities within him and he thought that after she married, the separation between the two of them would be inevitable.  She had noticed his reaction when she asked him to give her away and that only decreased her belief in him.  If he only wanted her to be happy then why couldn't he complete a task that was so simple yet important to her?  Could it be possible that Rudy was right?  Was Ash really having such a hard time watching her move on with her life that he was going to try and stop her from doing so?

Misty cleared her throat, indicating that she was about to speak for she and Ash had been in silence for almost a minute now.  He stood there, his eyes locked on her face, desperately awaiting whatever her reaction may be.  However, it was not what Ash had hoped, and the next words left Misty's mouth in a barley audible tone.  It was hardly even a whisper but still, they were firm nonetheless.

"I-I don't believe you."

Ash looked taken aback and for a moment wondered if he had heard her right. "W-What?"

"I said that you're wrong," she continued, not even knowing where her words were coming from. "He would never do that to me."

"Misty, the guy told me to my face that he cheats on you," Ash informed her, somewhat incredulous to her denial of the very true fact. "If that's not enough for you than what is?"

Misty turned her head away from him, not answering him but simply shaking her head.  An exasperated murmur of amazement came from Ash as she once again refused to believe what he told her.

"Am I suddenly completely untrustworthy all of a sudden?" he asked no one in particular as he threw up in hands in astonishment. "God, first Brock now you. Do I have some sort of history of lying that I am not aware of?" he continued to question sarcastically. "Because I'll have you know, Myst that every word I have spoken to you during our fourteen years of friendship have been nothing but the complete truth."  He swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat, looking at her with pained eyes.  "How can you not believe me?"

She sighed, her shoulders sagging hopelessly.  "I don't know what to believe anymore."

A look of recognition formed on his face as a revelation dawned over him. "I see what's going on here," he concluded, nodding to himself knowingly. "I should have known what would happen. You're too wrapped up with Rudy to see any fault in him. You're too in _loovee_ to see what's right in front of your face or to accept the fact that I am not lying to you." Her expression darkened at his sarcasm. A humorless snicker escaped his lips as he muttered the next words under his breath. "And you called me dense..."

"Ash, what the hell is your problem?!" Misty shrieked, anger filling her for no apparent reason at all, it was only the fact that he was yelling at her that caused this sudden outburst.  It was an instant reflex, not a logical reaction.  She was known for her short temper which was bubbling at the surface during the present situation.  But she was confused.  The ideas Rudy had put in her head had caused her to question her faith in Ash.  Her mind had been toyed with to the point that she was actually turning on Ash, doubting him when she never had before.  "You say you want be to be happy and instead here you are feeding me all of this shit and doing the exact opposite of that. Can you try and comprehend for once in your life that you actually might not be right about something?"

"Misty, this is not about me or my pride," he told her. "It's about you and about how you won't let me prevent you from making the biggest mistake of your life."

She shook her head. "No, Ash, this does have to do with you. Maybe you can't except the fact that you're scrawny tomboy best friend actually found someone before you did. Maybe you thought that you'd be married first. Or maybe you really don't want me to be happy at all. You just want me available so you have someone to be alone with." Every word she spoke dripped with sarcasm but still held a sense of seriousness although it was something she secretly knew was not true at all. Ash just stared at her with an expression of shock and hurt on his face before eventually speaking up.

"Is that what you think?" he asked in a low voice.

Misty sighed and looked at him feebly. "I…" she began, but Ash cut her off, already knowing what the answer would be and not wanting to have his heart stomped on again by another comment from her.

"Well, fine," he spat out bitterly. "If that's what you choose to believe than so be it. Do what you want, marry Rudy for all I care. Go right ahead, I'm not stopping you," he continued in his harsh tone. "You won't have to worry about your terrible friend who just wants you to be miserable any more because I'll be out of your hair once and for all."

"What do you mean?" she inquired quizzically.

"I'm being relocated," he informed her bluntly. "The League wants me to work in their position in Johto."

Misty gulped. "J-Johto?"

"That's right."

"You're-you're not gonna go, are you?" she stammered somewhat nervously. The actual reality of Ash not being right by her side was something that terrified Misty more than anything. She had grown so accustomed to him always being there that if he was not it would be unbearable to her. She anxiously awaited his answer, silently praying that despite the heated fight they had just experienced, he would not be leaving her and confirming one of her greatest fears at the same time.

"Why shouldn't I?" Ash queried with a shrug of his shoulders. "I sure as hell don't have any reason to stick around here anymore." A few dreaded moments of silence passed before Ash swallowed the lump in his throat and struggled to keep his emotions in check. "Have a nice life, Myst," he choked out before turning and slowly making his way down the street. Misty could do nothing but watch his departing figure in stunned silence, trying to ignore the harsh reality that it may have been the last time she ever saw him.  
  


Everything's so blurry _  
And everyone's so fake   
And everybody's empty   
And everything is so messed up   
Pre-occupied without you   
I cannot live at all   
My whole world surrounds you   
I stumble then I crawl   
  
You could be my someone   
You could be my scene   
You know that I'll protect you   
From all of the obscene   
I wonder what you're doing   
Imagine where you are   
There's oceans in between us   
But that's not very far   
  
Can you take it all away   
Can you take it all away   
Well ya shoved it in my face   
This pain you gave to me   
Can you take it all away   
Can you take it all away   
Well ya shoved it my face__  
  
_

--  
Misty climbed the stairs to Rudy's apartment building, her footsteps heavy just like her heart. She didn't know why she was going to talk to him now. Ash's accusations had shocked her to her core but she had shocked herself by secretly believing them a little bit. She felt completely torn... between her past and future. 

Ash was her best friend and every word that had come out of his mouth through their fourteen years of friendship was always one of truth. But then there was Rudy, the man she supposedly loved and the man she was supposed to spend the rest of her life with. He would never do that to her... or at least that's what she hoped. And Misty could not help feeling terrible that she was not going to see her fiancé to have him console her, but to see if Ash's claims about him were true.

Misty tiredly ran a hand through her ginger locks once she reached Rudy's apartment door. She fumbled in her bag for the key to his apartment. They were supposed to move in with one another several months ago, but Rudy for some reason had thought it'd be better if they wait until after the wedding for her to live with him. That piece of information had puzzled Misty, engaged couples normally were roommates and she could not contemplate the reason why he did not want his future with as his.

Misty shook her head once more, trying to clear the pondering from her head and twisted her key in the lock. She opened the door and instantly her eyes widened and shocked gasp escaped from her lips upon the sight before her. There her husband-to-be lay naked in his bed with another woman next to him without clothing as well.

"Oh! My God! Rudy!" Misty cried out in disbelief. Rudy immediately noticed her presence and jumped up from the bed, still tangled in the blankets and a guilty expression washing over his face reminding him that he had just been totally busted.

"You-you said you were gonna be out all night!" he blurted out for some apparent reason although his excuse just angered Misty even more.

"Oh, that's right!" she exclaimed while sarcastically looking at her watch. "I am early! Please... finish!" she shrieked while spinning around and exiting his apartment.

"Misty, wait!" Rudy yelled out after her although it was pointless considering she had already slammed the door shut. He winced at the sound before feebly asking a question which at the moment proved who insensitive those members of the male species could actually be.

"Can I at least get my ring back?"

--

Everyone is changing _  
There's no one left that's real   
To make up your own ending   
And let me know just how you feel   
Cause I am lost without you   
I cannot live at all   
My whole world surrounds you   
I stumble then I crawl   
  
You could be my someone   
You could be my scene   
You know that I will save you   
From all of the unclean   
I wonder what you're doing   
I wonder where you are   
There's oceans in between us   
But that's not very far   
  
Can you take it all away   
Can you take it all away   
Well ya shoved it in my face   
This pain you gave to me   
Can you take it all away   
Can you take it all away   
Well ya shoved it my face___

This pain you gave to me__

_--_

Ash dragged his feet up the stairs of his apartment building, relief invading him as he finally reached the floor he lived on.  He began to walk down the long dingy hallway but wound up stumbling and smashing his elbow into a nearby wall.  A smirk escaped his lips and he ignored the throbbing emanating from his arm, he was completely oblivious to any pain at the moment; physical that was.

After Misty had run off, Ash didn't give his brain time to try and process what had happened.  He turned around and briskly strode right back into Francesco's this time taking a seat at the bar and consuming anything alcoholic that he could afford. Five beers, four tequila shots, and three gin and tonics later Ash found everything _a lot  easier to handle._

And now, as he drunkenly tried to insert his key in the door to his apartment, Ash desperately tried to keep the reminding thoughts which were beginning to surface even in his intoxicated state.  He could not recap what had gone on several hours before, it was too unbelievable, too hurtful.  It was his greatest fear come true, her betraying him for another man, him letting her walk out of her life to continue it with someone else.  He had once said he couldn't live without her friendship but now he was going to have to, and the initial heartbreak was too much from him to deal with at the present moment.

Ash opened the door, finally managing to get it opened after several failed attempts.  He went to throw his keys on the nearby table, something he did every time he re-entered his home, but his intoxication caused  him to miss and throw them onto the floor.  He tripped on his shoelace while trying to shut the door, a snicker escaping his lips.  He turned around, expecting to see the usual shadows that came alive in his apartment during the night, but instead he came face-to-face with a very surprised Melody.

"Ash!" the brunette exclaimed, her voice unnaturally high and airy.  "Oh my god, I-I didn't expect you to be home yet," she blurted out, feeling completely idiotic once she had done so.  She searched her ex-boyfriend's face nervously, expecting to see anger forming on his usually calm features but instead his face remained expressionless, and he averted his weary eyes to meet her wide ones.

"Mel, what the hell are you doing here?" he asked, his voice coming low and gruff, no trace of any emotion within it.

"Um, I was cleaning my apartment and I ran across a bunch of stuff that you left there when… we were together," the last part of her sentence came out in a strangled tone and she momentarily closed her eyes to overcome the pain that was beginning to wash over her, she hadn't known this would be so difficult.  

Their breakup had been healthy, there was no throwing things or screaming, Melody understood Ash's feelings and tried to be the bigger person by ending their relationship before things got ugly.  It wasn't until now, with her standing in his apartment, giving back his possessions, that she realized just how much she had missed him the past couple of weeks.  

"Um," she stammered, self-consciously running a hand through her chestnut locks.  "I-I still had my key but don't worry I left it there with everything else," she added hastily, "I was just going to leave the stuff here and write you a note."  Melody exhaled loudly when she finished, fidgeting with anticipation as she awaited his response.  To her surprise Ash seemed barley phased by any of the things she had told him and did not register any bit of shock or guilt upon seeing her again.

"Whatever," he mumbled before beginning to walk in the other direction.  Melody watched him, pieces clicking in her mind as she saw Ash trip over his coffee table and land ungracefully on the couch.

"Are you drunk?" she asked, her eyebrows furrowing together confusedly.

He looked up at her with bloodshot eyes and she immediately felt stupid for not realizing his current situation earlier.  He sighed dramatically, cocking his head to the side before answering with a sigh.  "Yeah."  Ash leaned back against the sofa, trying to rest his legs on the coffee table which had always been too far away from anyone to do so.  His feet flopped to the ground and a laugh escaped his lips.  "I must be getting shorter."

Melody groaned, moving over toward him.  "Oh, Ash," she muttered in exasperation.  She remembered during the midst of their relationships when she had to drive him home when he had drank too much and wound up being the one who made sure he got tucked in safely.  Her annoyance increased each one of the few times it had happened, Ash was never one to hold his liquor that well.  She glanced over at where he was still attempting to rest his feet against the table with no such luck.  She knelt down in front of him, and carefully undid his shoes, leaving them disregarded on the floor.

"WhatchadoinMel?" Ash slurred.

She sighed.  "What I always do when this happens."

"Oh," he answered in understanding.  "ThanksMelyourethebest." 

Melody bit her lip, surprised at the tears that had suddenly formed in her eyes from his simple drunken statement.  "No, I'm not, she is," she muttered under her breath and Ash looked at her curiously.

"WhatdyasayMel?"

"Nothing," she sniffled, standing up from her position on the floor.  "Look, I guess I'm gonna be heading off, um, it was nice to see you again, I guess," she mumbled awkwardly looking over at Ash for a sign of recognition to her words.  Her ex-boyfriend, however, was currently trying to undo the button on his left sleeve with his left hand and was having little success in doing so.  Shaking her head toward herself, she made her way out of his apartment, her hand was clasped on the doorknob when Ash's voice quietly pierced the air.

"She's not the best."

Melody whirled around, incredulous that the words he spoke were actually spaced apart.  "W-Who's not?" she questioned gently, just to make sure they were on the same page and she was not about to make a complete idiot of herself.

"Misty," she heard him mutter, his tone shifting to one of severe remorse and pain.  She froze for a moment, unsure of what to do in such a situation.  To simply walk out the door seemed way too harsh when Ash was sitting there drunk and depressed, in desperate need of comfort.  Despite of all that had happened, Melody could not will herself to stop caring about him.  When the sound of Ash sniffling from the other side of the room came to her ears, her decision was made.  Any plans she had for the rest of the night did no longer exist as she walked over and took a seat on the couch next to him just in time to notice a fat tear sliding down his cheek.

"I-I told her everything, Mel," he informed, his voice slurring.  "I told her everything I knew and she just fucking threw it back in my face."  Melody kept her mouth shut, not asking any questions, simply listening as he poured his heart out to her.  Another tear slid down Ash's cheek, followed by another and another, each one of their paths leaving trails of water on his face.  "She didn't even believe me for a second."

"Didn't believe what, Ash?" she queried gently but he ignored her, continuing to deliver his heartbroken words.

"He doesn't love her," he stated bluntly.  "He can't.  At least not like I do."  He averted his gaze at to Melody, his chocolate orbs filled with indescribable pain as he said his next words.  "Nobody can love her like I do."

Melody closed her eyes, trying to stop her own onslaught of tears which were beginning to form with increasing frequency.  She hadn't thought it could happen back in the midst of their relationship.  Ash had always seemed so distant from her, so preoccupied with everything that she was not a part of.  She spent the majority of her time desperately trying to get his attention and make him come out of his shell, that he'd be the perfect boyfriend she wanted him to be, showering her with unconditional love.  She hadn't thought it was possible.  But she had clearly been wrong.

He was capable of being the man she wanted him to be.  He was capable of love.  He was capable of selflessness.  Just not with her.

She wiped away a stray tear and looked over at him.  His head was in his hands, his shoulders shaking with angry sobs.  She raised her hand, resting it on the small of his back, rubbing soft circles on it in a comforting motion.

"I'm so goddamn stupid," he mumbled, angry and self-loathing evident in his words.

"No, you're not," she murmured.  "People do crazy things when they're…" she swallowed, nearly choking on her words.  "…in love," she finished in a strangled tone.

He looked up at her again, the same devastated features washing over his face.  "She doesn't love me, Mel," he whispered, his voice barley audible, "S-She doesn't love me," he repeated before proceeding to burst into tears yet again, resting his head in Melody's lap and stretching his legs out along the length of the couch.

She sat there silently, looking down at him as he cried himself to sleep.

And then, she did the same.__

Nobody told me what you thought _  
Nobody told me what to say   
Everyone showed you where to turn   
Told you when to runaway   
Nobody told you where to hide   
Nobody told you what to say   
Everyone showed you where to turn   
Showed you when to run away   
  
Can you take it all away   
Can you take it all away   
Well ya shoved it in my face   
This pain you gave to me   
Can you take it all away   
Can you take it all away   
Well ya shoved it my face  
This pain you gave to me_

This pain you gave to me_  
This pain you gave to me  
  
You take it all   
You take it all away...   
This pain you gave to me   
You take it all away   
This pain you gave to me   
Take it all away   
This pain you gave to me_

TBC

--

A/N: Sorry for the delay!  It's just that this was a hard chapter to write due to its length as well as importance to the story.  Please don't tell me that Misty is OOC, I purposely added the scene with her and Rudy in chap. 9 and wrote it within the text of why she was skeptical to believe Ash.  In situations like this one, people can tend to let what they hear override their logical judgment.  I hope the fight was realistic and not overly dramatic or unbelievable.  

Same thing with the part where Misty walks in on Rudy.  I didn't want to make a whole big deal out of it but her feelings over his unfaithfulness will be described in the next chapter.  I was going for a more humorous attempt for now.  As for Melody, I decided to add her into the conflict instead of leaving her out of the whole fic once she had played her part.  I tired to give a different atmosphere to her demeanor and show that she is a person with feelings, not just Misty's romantic rival.  

Anyway, I think I've rambled on for long enough, it's just that I'm kind of nervous about this chapter.  The next part will be up soon, but who knows how long it'll be until everything is resolved ;)  The song is Blurry by Puddle of Mud, btw.  Thank you for the reviews and happy new year to everyone! =)


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

"_Why do we always hurt the ones who love us… and love the ones who hurt us_?"

_--_

I hate you, I love you _  
I just can't remember to forget you   
Who are you, who needs you?   
You make me feel alive, I die, so high   
I'm crawling on the ground   
I have found I can fly   
  
One of these days it all comes together   
One of those days that goes on forever   
Think I sound crazy? Maybe, whatever   
What's it all about?   
  
It's about life, it's about fun   
It's over before it has begun   
It's about you, it's about me   
It's about everything between and I say   
I'm saying goodbye to you, I say hi to you with no clue   
It's about time that I   
Make up my mind  _

The cool breeze rustled throughout the trees, causing whatever was left of their green leaves to sway in the wind, winter was rapidly approaching and it wouldn't be long until snow was cast upon the ground. The sun had well risen above the horizon, falling into late morning and lighting the forest with its illuminating glow. The sunlight reflected off of the clear blue body of water creating a mirror image. Misty gazed deep into her reflection which she saw in the river she stood in front of. 

A longing sigh escaped her lips as she took recognition into her location. A part of her really did not know why she had chosen this place of all places to stand and think of how drastically her life had changed within the past ten or so hours. She had come here several times before whenever she needed to do some serious thinking, most of which regarded Ash. She did not know if he was the main reason for her coming here this time, however. This was the place they had met but Ash was not her fiancé who she had found in bed with another woman not so long ago.

She still did not understand why she hadn't cried yet. Misty expected herself to burst into endless tears and lock herself in her room for months, moping around the house about losing her 'true love' But she wouldn't do that. Because in all honesty Rudy had not been her true love. Hell, she never even really loved him at all. He was simply someone she had settled for when in reality she knew it was not the person she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. Sadly, however, that particular person did not return her feelings and she had stupidly pushed him away with her own naivety.

Misty's eyes lingered to the engagement ring which she had yet to remove from her hand. An annoyed thought flew through her head as realized at all the canceling and explanations that were going to have to be made. She remembered Rudy's muffled 'Can I at least keep the ring?' after she slammed the door to his apartment and she immediately became disgusted with herself for not noticing the sings earlier.  She glanced down at the diamond once again. She had a half a mind to return it and keep the cash he had paid for it herself. Her own conscience ruined that idea, however. Although it would certainly pay her back for all the money she had lost investing into the wedding she knew deep in her heart it wouldn't be right.

And on that note, Misty slid the piece of jewelry off of her finger before throwing it into the lake, witnessing as it splashed on top of the water and sunk beneath the surface.

She found a smile creeping onto her face for some unknown reason as the ring disappeared from her vision. It was as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She was now free of Rudy, and would no longer have to deal with the lies he had fed her for God-knew how long. One other issue still remained, however. Her situation with Ash.

She still could not believe some of the things she had said the night before. In her heart she knew she had not meant most of them, but her anger for at Ash for what she thought was him trying to deprive her of what he interpreted as happiness overpowered the very truthful fact that he had never once lied to her.  She remembered the hurt evident in his gaze when she accused him of not speaking the truth. It was as if her siding with Rudy had pained him in the worst way imaginable and her simple denying of his words had pushed him over the edge. She also recalled the emotions readable on his face when she had asked him to give her away. His reasons behind it seemed to go beyond the fact that Rudy was not the man she was meant to marry. They seemed more personal and applicable to his own best interest. But for some reason Misty could not decipher what that particular emotion was.

And then suddenly, out of nowhere it hit her. Like a ton of bricks and the force of an earthquake it smashed against her mind and opened her eyes up to the hidden meaning behind the countless situations she had been completely oblivious to see. It was plainly obvious and Misty found herself disgusted by her own naivety and blindness to what had been right in front of her face the entire time.

It all made sense to her now. The reason behind his blushing whenever she playfully kissed or hugged him. The reason behind why he would get overjoyed by a simple positive comment from her and become depressed over a minor argument. The reason behind why he stayed forever by her side for the past fourteen years, not even leaving when gaining his title but actually moving to the city she lived in the be closer to her. The reason behind his intense stares into her eyes and the way he would become speechless when seeing her in her full beauty. The reason behind why he had been saddened when hearing the news of her and Rudy's engagement and the reason why he had said the things he did to her the previous night. All of those reasons added up and only came to one possible solution. He loved her. Ash had been in love with Misty all along, and she had never known it.

An incredulous sigh escaped Misty's lips as the startling realization dawned over her out of nowhere after over a decade of obliviousness. Her own feelings for Ash had blocked out what she had not been able to see, her own fears of his rejection forced her to believe he could never think of her in that way and they would be nothing more than best friends for as long as they were together. It was truly unbelievable.

A wave of sadness washed over her as she began to imagine the wonderful life they could have had together. By now they could have already been married after years of being in a relationship. They would have had the perfect future that every person dreamed of one time or another. Childhood sweethearts falling in love and spending the rest of their lives together. It was a fairy tale cliché, one that Misty had always fantasized about as her future, and it could have been true.

_It can be_, she thought to herself suddenly. Misty did not know why she was berating herself for depriving the wondrous experience she could have been indulged in with Ash. That dream of her's could have very well been proven as reality. He loved her, she loved him, she was single now and everything was as it should be. They would finally have what they had each been so desperately wanting forever.

With a wide smile and an excited expression Misty scampered off, hurrying to get back into the city... and hurrying to start the life she so longed to have.

--_   
It's simple, confusing, the truth is I'm winning but I'm losing __  
And pulling and pushing, won't do me any good   
It could, it should   
I'm honest to myself that the truth is I lied_

_One of these days it all comes together   
One of those days that goes on forever   
Think I sound crazy? Maybe, whatever   
What's it all about?   
  
It's about life, it's about fun   
It's over before it has begun   
It's about you, it's about me   
It's about everything between and I say   
I'm saying goodbye to you, I say hi to you with no clue   
It's about time that I   
Make up my mind_   
--

Misty frantically turned of the ignition of her car once she had parked it in the desired spot.  She sighed, trying to control herself but it was no use the anticipation and excitement she was experiencing would not die down.  Here she was, about to do the one thing she had been trying to do for years.  The initial anxiousness was unavoidable.

She grasped the door handle preparing to open it once she had checked her reflection in the mirror which opened above the steering wheel.  Pulling her jacket tightly over herself she made her way to the doors of Ash's apartment building, slipping inside as one of the building's resident's entered.

She couldn't get up the stairs fast enough.  They led to Ash.

_Time is creeping behind me, surrounding around me   
Fading the words so desperately   
Now give me a reason that I can believe in   
Time is something you can't rewind   
One of these days it all comes together   
One of those days that goes on forever   
Think I sound crazy? Maybe, whatever   
What's it all about? _

_It's about life, it's about fun   
It's over before it has begun   
It's about you, it's about me   
It's about everything between and I say   
I'm saying goodbye to you, I say hi to you with no clue   
It's about time that I   
Make up my mind_

_--_

Her hands were shaking as she reached the floor that Ash's apartment was located on.  _It's okay, you can do this_, she desperately tried to reassure herself but feelings of uncertainty were arising within her.  What if she was wrong?  What if she had not really figured out Ash's true intentions?  What if he opened the door and was not willing to forgive her, let alone proclaim his love for her?  What if this had all been a huge mistake?  _No, she told herself stubbornly, fighting back the sudden doubts that had begun to overwhelm her.  She wasn't wrong, Ash loved her.  If she was sure about anything it was that._

Misty exhaled deeply before raising her hand to knock on his door.  She pulled her fist away after three sharp raps were banged against the door.  Apprehension and impatience she was experiencing were bubbling to the surface and she had to fight to keep her emotions in check.  Her breath got caught in her chest as she saw the doorknob begin to turn, but as the door opened to reveal its occupant the excited smile disappeared from Misty's face only to be replaced by an expression of pure shock, anger, and despair. 

For instead of Ash standing there, ready to take her into his arms and never let him go, was Melody.

Instantly, a flashback of the night before occurred, except this time it wasn't the same.  Other characters were playing the offending roles, but she was still the victim who suffered the hideousness of situation.

She swallowed the lump that had quickly formed in her throat.  _Oh God, _she thought, _not again, this isn't happening again_.

Melody stared back at her in shock, but her stunned expression was nothing to match Misty's who stared at the appearance of the other woman before her meticulously.

The brunette's make-up was smeared, dark circles of mascara and eye-liner beneath her long lashes, and her hair was a mess.  She was clad in a short black dress, high heels decorating her feet.  Everything about her appearance was filled with implications, resting on Misty's final conclusion that Melody had indeed spent the night in Ash's apartment.

While Misty was lying in her bed by herself, after having caught Rudy in the act, they had been…

They had been doing the exact same thing her ex-fiancé and that woman had been.

She couldn't move, couldn't talk, couldn't think, she couldn't even _breathe, in this terrifying scenario that was inching over her reality, changing every aspect of her life so fast that it blurred before her eyes.  All she knew was that she had to get out of there; her very own sanity depended on getting away from the scene of the crime.  Melody opened her mouth to speak just as Misty turned on her heel and hurried down the stairs of the apartment._

She ran as fast as she could, turning down corridors, sharply turning corners, the scene she had just witnessed replayed itself over and over in her mind like a broken record, only one possible explanation available for it.  She gulped, blindly running down the hallway as tears welled in her azure eyes.

Never, in her entire twenty-four years of existence, had she felt so hurt, so betrayed, so… _stupid_.

She had thought she had it all figured out.  She had thought her eyes had finally been opened to what she had been blind to see this whole time.  She had thought that he loved her.

She had thought wrong.

She didn't know this kind of pain existed.  She had been shocked to find Rudy doing just what Ash accused him of but surprisingly, no gut-wrenching heartbreak had enveloped her like it would to most people in her situation.  Seeing him there, with someone else, just made her realize how unimportant he had been to her and how she wasn't losing him because quite frankly, she never had him in the first place.

But this, this was different.  This was a million times worse.  This was Ash.

Misty scampered down the steps as fast as she could; swinging the door of her car open so fast it practically tore off its hinges.  She quickly slammed it behind her, plopping down on the leather of the seat, her shaky breathing the only sound that was heard.

Where did she go from here?  The endless cancellations regarding her and Rudy's wedding were unavoidable.  She absolutely dreaded the explanations she would have to give to her friends, family, caterers, and florists, of why the engagement was suddenly off.  She had no source of comfort to get her through this.  Ash, who she would have normally run to under any circumstances, was not an option.  He had made it perfectly clear the night before that he did not want anything to do with her.  And besides, he was probably going to be too busy rebuilding his relationship with Melody to deal with Misty's problems.  He was always putting his life on hold for her, desperately trying to make her happy in any way possible, she had never realized just how much she had taken his generosity and kindness for granted.

Until now.

Misty closed her eyes, an overwhelming feeling of loneliness washing over her as she tried to deal with the sudden turn of events that were rapidly changing from bad to worse.  She sighed longingly to herself, closing her eyes and raking her hands through her hair.

Before putting her head in her hands and sobbing.

TBC

--

_A/N: Dun, dun, dun, and the drama grows lol ;)  But don't worry, things will get better soon, I hope you've all enjoyed everything up to this point.There's only two chapters to go, including the epilogue.  The song is It's About Time by Lillix, please review =)_


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

_"If you love someone, just tell them... before the moment passes by." -My Best Friend's Wedding  
_  
 --__

Light filtered through the open crack of the window, finding its way through the cluttered furniture of the apartment to reach his eyes.  His lids fluttered briefly before opening fully.  He immediately regretted doing so the moment he did, however.  The simple sunlight felt as if it was going to burn a hole in his retina and an overwhelming throbbing filled his head.  Ash groaned, lifting up his fatigued body, his head pounded fiercely as he felt the full effects of his hangover.  He inwardly asked himself one question;__

_Why the hell did I drink so much last night?_

And then, with the force of a thousand bricks and the heartbreak of a million deaths, he remembered.

The restaurant… Misty asking him to give her away… storming out onto the street… fighting... her walking away… going to the bar… drinking everything in sight…

Whatever followed the chain of events was nothing but a blur to Ash.  He ran a hand through his messy hair, not wanting to bother to put together the bits and pieces of what had happened after his drunken walk home.  But his fight with Misty was still vivid in his mind, each word of mistrust and denial that came from her mouth like a dagger to his heart.  He remembered it all, every terrible moment of it.  And it hurt him, more than anything had ever hurt him before.

His eyes drifted to the window of his apartment and he glimpsed at the numerous pedestrians scattered below, going on with their lives, happy and carefree, oblivious to the drastic turn of his.

He couldn't stay. Not when his only reason for being there was gone forever. 

The idea that been lurking in a corner of his mind suddenly stepped out of the shadows and became a fully formed plan. He trudged to his phone, picked it up, and punched in the League's office number.

"Lance? Yeah, it's me. Look, I-I decided to relocate after all, that is if the offer's still available. It is?"  He sighed with relief.  "You'll tell them I'm coming out to Johto?"

He listened to Lance's voice barking out instructions of what he was to do and where he was to go when he reached his destination.

"Hey, Lance? Can you look into finding some other stuff for me to do out there? Like, other smaller tournaments and speeches and fundraisers and stuff …because I've decided to stay out there for a while."

He listened patiently to his recommendations and found himself staring at the picture of him and Misty which he kept on a nearby shelf.  He reached over, picking it up and studying it carefully.  "No. I'm probably not coming back to Cerulean."

--

Yawning, Lily descended the flight of stairs of the Cerulean Gym, rubbing sleep from her aqua eyes and twirling a ringlet of bright hair around her finger, completely unfazed by the fact that morning was practically over with and was now drifting into noon. She pulled her pink robe tightly around her body as she made her way to the kitchen only to see Misty sitting at the table, staring blankly ahead, clutching a coffee cup in her trembling hands.

"Morning sunshine," Lily muttered sarcastically, reaching for her own mug and proceeding to pour the dark liquid from the half-filled pot of coffee. "I was surprised to see you were already back when I got home. Usually, you're out with one of the many men in your life," she smirked waiting to see Misty turn around and roll her eyes in irritation at her comment. Instead her sister remained fixated in her spot, not moving a muscle or registering any kind of reaction. "That was a joke," Lily reminded her, but still Misty remained unresponsive. She shook her head to herself, dropping the subject. "Anyway," she began, starting a new conversation topic. "My night sucked. You know, I really thought that such a thing as a thirty-year old virgin was a myth but apparently it is not. Because I swear no guy who has had sex before can possibly be that clueless," she swung a lock of hair over her shoulder dramatically and examined her manicure. "Honestly, I think I'm just getting too good for these men, I mean..."

"Oh my God!" Misty exploded, suddenly coming out of her stolid state, abruptly interrupting her sister's rambling and flashing her an angry look, her eyes wide with fury. "Would you listen to yourself?! Here you are complaining about your night, just because the random stranger you decided to hop into bed with wasn't up to the standards of the ten million other guys you've been with. Seriously, Lily! You're twenty-six years old and you still behave like you're seventeen! You're an adult and you haven't even attempted to have any kind of a serious relationship! How can you possibly not see anything wrong with the way you act, going from stranger to stranger, meaningless experience to meaningless experience? It's disgusting, quite frankly. And you can be sure as hell that you're going to be kicking yourself in the end when you wind up all alone because you blew off every chance you ever had for love."

With a hoarse voice and choking up Misty sat her shaking body back down on the chair she had stood up from in the midst of her yelling, placing her elbows on the kitchen table and putting her head in her hands in a feeble attempt to calm herself. Lily simply stared at her, her mouth open in shock, still trying to comprehend the harsh words her sister had just thrown at her. After several minutes of uneasy, stunned silence, the older sister willed herself to speak.

"Wow," Lily muttered, her voice holding neither anger or hurt but simply surprise from Misty's outburst. "I was certainly not expecting that." 

Misty's uneasy breathing was the only response heard. 

"You know, I was this," Lily held thumb and index finger about a centimeter apart, "close to bitch-slapping you in the face when you basically told me what a gross slut I was but for some reason, I actually managed to hold back."

Again, Misty registered no sort of reply other than her shaky breaths and the first traces of anger began to sink into Lily's voice as she spoke her next words.

"What the hell was that, Misty?" she questioned irritably, her shocked calm voice seeming to drift away. "Can you please tell me why you found the need to go and attack me like that because I for one have no idea! I'm sorry that we all can't get married and have perfect fiancé's like you and go off and live a perfect life complete with the suburban house, two kids, and a minivan." Disdain dripped from each one of her words. "Jesus," she exclaimed. "What the hell is your problem today?"

Lily stood there, arms folded across her chest as she glared at her sister menacingly, impatiently tapping her foot as she waited for her to reply.

"Well?" she demanded exasperatedly but the only response she got was a sniffle. Lily inched her way closer to the table, trying to get a better look at her sister's expression, a task that was difficult since her face was obscured by her hands. Another sniffle was heard followed by the unmistakable sound of a muffled sob. Lily froze, her brow furrowed in confusion, anger beginning to subside.

Misty was… _crying?_

Lily bit her lip and hesitantly moved closer to her sister. "Misty," she muttered carefully, resting a hand upon the small of her back. That was all it took. The small sniffles and threatening tears Misty had been emendating suddenly let loose, transforming into a full blown crying session. "Misty," Lily said again but sister's sobs only worsened. "Misty, what's the matter?"

Misty sniffled loudly, managing to cease her weeping for a moment to speak. "Nothing," she choked out unconvincingly.

Lily raised an eyebrow. "Myst, I haven't seen you cry since you were seven and you had a pretty good reason for it, considering me and Daisy accidentally let your Goldeen get sucked in the pool filter. So if you're upset now, it obviously has to be something big."

"Nuh uh," Misty shook her head adamantly.

"Misty," Lily eyed her sternly. "Come on, the only way I can forgive you about your little outburst is if you tell me what's going on."

Her sister sighed, lifting her head for the first time and revealing her red, puffy eyes and tear-stained face in the process.  "I don't even know where to begin…" 

"Yeah?  Well, I've got plenty of time, so don't worry about it."  Lily reached over and grasped her sister's hand tenderly.  "Talk to me."

Misty gulped, swallowing the lump in her throat and wiped away the salty trails that remained on her cheeks.  "Yesterday, Ash asked me to go out to dinner…"

--

"So, let me get this straight…" Lily began ten minutes later, once her sister had finished explaining to her all the confusing details that were included with the events of the past twenty-four hours.  "Ash tries to tell you about Rudy, gets so mad and freaked out when you don't believe him that he is practically in _tears_ when he storms off, just so he can go back to his apartment and sleep his ex-girlfriend?"

Misty nodded, biting her lip, and tearing the already shredded tissue in her hands into even smaller fragments.

"Huh," Lily said in what seemed like mock incredulousness.  "Well, that just makes _perfect_ sense, doesn't it?" she inquired sarcastically.

"Ugh, Lily, you don't get it!" her sister exclaimed.  "You weren't there, he was so mad, I've never seen him that angry before.  And then this morning Melody goes and answers the door in the clothes she was wearing last night."  She dragged her palms down her face before massaging the temples of her forehead to reduce the headache that was coming on.  "God," she muttered to herself.  "I just, I feel like such an idiot!"

"Honey, I know what it looks like, but that doesn't necessarily mean…" Lily was cut off as Misty groaned in annoyance, apparently agitated with her sister's explanations.

"You know, for someone who is such an expert in this area, you're really acting like a dumbass."

Lily shot her a dirty look.  "All that I'm saying," she stated calmly, "is that you shouldn't jump to conclusions before you have your facts straight."

"Oh, yeah?" Misty challenged.  "Let me ask you something, Lil, have you ever been with someone who wasn't single and then had his wife or girlfriend walk in the house while you were there?"

Her sister snickered at the absurdity of the question.  "Like ten million times."

"Uh huh.  And let me ask you something else; had the two of you had a perfectly innocent night when she came home?"

The confident grin slid off Lily's face at the realization.  "Well, no," she admitted and her sister bitterly shot her a look that said 'I told you so'.  "But, hey, remember, that's me.  I'm disgusting, you said it yourself, remember?"  Misty averted her eyes downcast guiltily, aware of the fact that although Lily seemed to be unaffected by her previous outburst, there was no way she was forgetting it.  "I haven't had an innocent night since I was fifteen.  For all you know, Melody could have been dropping off some of his stuff o-or comforting him as he spilled his heart out to her about you."

"Yeah, maybe in a perfect world," Misty muttered sarcastically, bringing her coffee mug to her lips.  "And you know what the worst part is?" she asked after taking a sip of the brown liquid whose warmth had diminished several minutes ago.  "Before this whole thing I was so _sure_ that I had everything figured out.  I thought that I had finally realized how Ash felt about me and that I was stupid for not noticing sooner."  She smirked bitterly, shaking her head to herself sadly.  "Boy, was I wrong."

"Myst," her sister sighed.  "You don't necessarily know that…"

Lily was cut off as a knocking filled the air.  Misty turned to walk over to the backdoor where the pounding was coming from.  She grasped the handle and swung the door open, a pitiful sense of déjà vu overwhelming her at the sight of Melody standing before her once again.

The brunette's appearance was a lot more refreshed than it had been that morning.  She had changed into casual pants and a shirt, her make-up neatly reapplied, brown locks pulled into a tight ponytail.  However, whatever she looked like played no role of importance to Misty, who shot daggers into the eyes of the woman in front of her.  The same woman, she brutally realized, was the reason for her impeding heartache.

"H-Hey, Misty," Melody stammered somewhat nervously, finally breaking the awkward silence.

"Melody," Misty replied flatly, simply out of politeness.

"Um, look, I'm sorry to impose on you like this but... are you busy right now?"

"No, no, not really," Misty admitted.

"Can I come in?" she queried weakly. "I think we need to talk." 

Misty paused. Melody was by far the last person she wanted to see at the moment but she couldn't fight down the curiosity surging within her. She knew that the woman had not come here to gloat about her impending relationship with Ash and for some reason Misty felt that whatever Melody needed to talk to her about actually was very important.

Reluctantly, she moved away from the doorway, allowing Melody to follow her inside.

"Lily, Melody. Melody, Lily," Misty flatly introduced as she stepped back inside before taking her seat back at the kitchen table.

"Hey," Lily offered, reaching over to shake hands with Melody. "Um, didn't you used to be...?"

"Ash's girlfriend?" she finished and Lily grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, that's me."

"Used to be?" Misty muttered bitterly under her breath.

"And that would be my cue to exit," Lily noted to herself as she picked up her coffee mug and proceeded to exit the kitchen to give the two of them some privacy.

"You know," Misty began, her voice seeming to Melody to be almost _too_ nonchalant.  "I'm trying to remember the last time I opened a door without you being behind it."  She looked up and glared at Melody, a reaction that caused the other woman to nearly jump in fear.  The venomous look in Misty's eyes was enough to send shivers of ice up her spine.

"Yeah, about that," Melody began, awkward tones hardly subtle in her voice. "That's what I kind of came to talk to you about."

Misty sighed. There was no way she wanted to do was go into a whole big discussion about the heartbreaking events that had taken place only hours before. The whole experience had basically numbed her, and she was avoiding the fact that this had to be dealt with sooner or later. She was so close to losing it again and there wasn't a chance she was going to have a complete melt down in front of Melody. "I guess I was just in a bit of shock when I saw you, that's all," she explained, her voice no longer as harsh as it had previously been but a far step away from being friendly. "I-I thought you guys had broken up."

"We are broken up," Melody confirmed.

Misty let a smirk escape her lips.. "Do you answer the door to all of your ex-boyfriend's homes in the clothes you were wearing the night before?" she heard the tone in her voice and the tiniest bit of guilt began to invade her for a moment for being so judgmental and rude.

Melody gulped. She had never been close enough to Misty to actually have any sort of a fight with her. But she had witnessed the redhead's fiery temper whenever she was yelling at someone else and had heard about it from stories that Ash would tell her.  But in all honesty, Melody was quite frankly a little scared of having Misty angry with her.

"That's the thing," she replied. "I did spend the night at Ash's, but nothing happened." Misty snorted in disbelief, shooting her a skeptical look.  "No, I'm serious.  I had let myself in earlier just to drop off some of the stuff he left at my place. I was planning just to leave a note but he wound up coming back just as I was leaving. And he was really, really drunk."

"Well, I did have dinner with him that night," Misty informed, shrugging her shoulders as some of the hostility eased from her voice. "Maybe I didn't realize that he had drank too much."

"No, he was like completely trashed. He couldn't even walk two steps without falling all over the place. Anyway, you know how Ash is when he's wasted."

She made a noise of understanding as Melody continued.

"So, I just went to get the hell out of there, leaving him to pass out on the couch in peace but when I was on my way out he started talking to me," she paused before continuing, locking her gaze with Misty, "about you."

Misty closed her eyes, more painful memories of the night before flooding back to her. "He hates me, doesn't he?" she asked softly.

Melody sighed. "Look, I know you and Ash have a lot of history together and I do not want to get involved with something that can get really confusing. Especially now that you're engaged to Rudy..."

Misty inhaled sharply at her last sentence. "No, I'm not," she found herself saying. Melody eyed her dubiously and she shifted uncomfortably in her seat, trying to be as vague as possible when explaining something that was actually pretty embarrassing. "Me and Rudy aren't getting married any more, we, uh, we broke it off."

"Wow," Melody muttered in shock, trying to adjust to this drastic turn of events. "Um, okay... this sort of changes everything..."

Misty frowned.  "What do you mean?"

"I didn't really get all of the details but I take it you guys had some sort of a fight last night?"

She groaned.  "Fight would be an understatement."

"Yeah, well, Ash was kinda upset about it."

"Upset?  How?"

"Um, considering the man was drunkenly crying into my lap, I'm gonna have to say he was more than a little shook up.  He just kept going on and on about how you rejected him and…"

"Rejected him?" Misty queried and Melody sighed, shooting her look that indicated that she did not believe her apparent obliviousness to what she was talking about.

"Misty, come on, you guys have been friends for what thirteen, fourteen years?  Can you honestly say that you have no idea what I'm getting at?"

Misty kept her gaze fixated on the table below as Melody spoke her next words in a soft tone. 

"He loves you, he told me himself. You have to know that."

"I do," Misty whispered in reply, her voice barely audible. "Or at least I thought I had finally realized it. But when I went to his apartment to see him and you were there, I just, I thought I had just made a huge mistake," she admitted, looking up with pain filled eyes.

"Yeah, but now you know that you haven't," Melody told her gently. "It's not too late."

Misty sighed, shaking her head to herself. "Mel, I don't know..."

"Okay, but I do. I can see how you two feel about each other, okay, everyone can. So what, you two had a fight. But if you showed up on Ash's doorstep again and told him how you felt, there is no way in hell he is going to let a little disagreement stand in the way of your future together. There's nothing holding you back any more. There's no one in between, there's no me or Rudy to spot you. Let him know that you love him too, I mean it's about time."

Misty sat there, taking Melody's words into consideration.  In all honesty her explanations _did_ make perfect sense and seemed to work out in the way that Misty would get everything she had always wanted with Ash.  But anxious fear held her back.  She had been so sure this morning that everything would work out, and she would finally get to live the life she had only previously dreamed of.  But that had all came crashing down before she could even begin to covert her fantasy into a reality.  What if the same thing happened again?  Misty wasn't sure if she would be able to survive another failed attempt to admit her feelings to Ash.  She was still only hanging by a mere thread, severe inner turmoil still evident within her.  And she feared that if the events of several hours ago repeated themselves, that thread would snap and there would be nothing holding Misty up anymore.

She sighed, averting her eyes back up to the woman in front of her.  It was funny, quite frankly.  Minutes ago, Melody was definitely the most hated person in her mind, Rudy following only shortly after.  But now that she had actually taken the nerve and time to talk to her?  To come to her home and try to savor what was left of her and Ash's friendship so they would finally be able to have a relationship?  The word selfless couldn't even begin to describe Melody's actions but Misty couldn't help but still wonder what exactly her intentions of getting her and Ash together were, when she clearly still had feelings for him herself.

"Why are you doing this?" Misty spoke up. "You still love him, don't you?" she asked gently at the end.

Melody sighed heavily. "Yeah, I do," she responded weakly. "But he doesn't love me, I know that now.  And besides, all I really want," she took a deep breath, offering a weak smile before finishing, "is for him to be happy. And I know you're the only one who can do that."

Misty shook her head, massaging her temple with one hand.  "God," she murmured to herself.  "This is all happening so fast.  What…" a desperate exhale escaped her lips as she looked up toward Melody with questioning eyes, "what am I supposed to do now."

"Go to him.  Just tell him the truth, tell him everything you've always wanted to tell him.  You have to." Melody told her.  "It's the only way to fix things, to make everything right again," she sighed, "to make everything the way it should be."

Misty stood there, her mouth closed in a tight line, no sound emanating from her lips.  Heavy unspoken words hung between them, creating tension so thick it could have been cut with a knife.  Nothing was said for another brief moments and Misty inwardly weighed out her choices and tried to adjust to yet another turn of events that had taken place since the night before.

The silence was broken as another voice pierced the air.

"Well, what are you waiting for?!"  Misty and Melody turned to see Lily, who had been witnessing the whole conversation from the threshold of the kitchen and was currently shooting her sister incredulous looks.  "Go see Ash!  Come on!  Go!  Get!" she exclaimed, hurrying into the kitchen and pushing Misty toward the back door's exit.

"All right, all right, I'm going, I'm going," Misty said, holding up her hands.  She pulled her jacket off the back of the chair and awkwardly slid it over her shoulders.  Her shaking hand retrieved her keys from the table and she took a self-calming breath while shooting the two women a nervous but happy glance.  "Wish me luck," she murmured sheepishly, apprehension evident in her voice.

"Good luck," Melody said quietly, the smallest of smiles forming on her face.  A gesture which Misty warmly returned.

"Yeah, yeah, good luck, good luck, now go, woman!" Lily cried before proceeding to hurry Misty out of the house.

Misty grasped the doorknob and pulled the door open, one foot stepping into the outside environment.  She turned back around and stole a glimpse over her shoulder at Melody who despite her teary expression, still held the same grin on her face.  Sighing, Misty stepped back from the doorway and reentered her home, stopping in front of Melody to envelop her in a tight hug.  The brunette retuned the embrace somewhat surprisingly.  Misty pulled away, tears identical to Melody's mirrored in her turquoise orbs.

"Thank you," she whispered softly.

Melody stared back at her.  "You're welcome," she responded back.

The two women's eyes locked once more, a deep understanding forming along with some sort of unspoken bond that indicated each was aware of the other one's emotions.  Without another world, Misty whirled back around and briskly exited.

--  
_I feel fine_

_Now the rain has gone and the sun has come to shine_

_Nothing can get me down today_

_Head over heels_

_Got my mind made up as I'm driving through the fields_

_Nothing can get me down again_

_Catch me if you can_

_I've gotta make a getaway_

_  
As the sun goes down, wakin' up my dreams_

_And in my mind you're with me once again_

_Out of my heart, into your head_

_And inside my heart there's a place for you_

_And in my mind I'm with you once again_

_Out of my heart, into your head_

_Chasing the sun_

_Tryin' to get away_

_From the rain that's gonna come_

_Hope I make it all the way_

  
-- 

Misty flung open the door to Ash's apartment, not surprised to find it unlocked as usual seeing that it was daytime. Ash only locked his door at night and she constantly berated him that anyone could still just walk in during the day and how it was completely unsafe.  Every time, he had cheekily replied that if that did happen, the perpetrator would have her to deal with.

She burst through the doorway, expecting to see Ash sitting on his couch in his boxers, gobbling down cereal sloppily.  Instead, as soon as she was inside, a startled gasp escaped her.

The apartment was basically empty. Pieces of furniture had been removed, including Ash's couch, television, stereo...

Misty ran into his bedroom, opening the door swiftly. She found that the bed was still there, stripped of its sheets, pillows, and blankets, the battered mattress the only thing remaining. She moved over to Ash's dresser, frantically opening drawers, finding each one of them empty. She was about to close the bottom drawer after finding that its components had been taken out of it when something caught her eye.

It appeared to be a slip piece of paper and when Misty picked it up she learned it was a photograph... of her.

An initial shock ran through her body as she begun to wonder why Ash had a picture of only her in the first place and why he had left it behind when he had gone wherever he had went.

It was a close up shot. It was so close up that you could not register what the actual background was and only Misty's head and shoulders were shown. The picture had been taken in action. Her head was slightly turned to the side and from her expression you could tell she had been laughing. The photo was actually quite flattering to her. Misty's red locks had a neat but messy look and some of the straight strands had gone into her face where she was in the middle of using her hand to move them away. Her azure eyes seemed to have an extra sparkle in them and her rosy cheeks stood prominent on her pale skin.

But one thing tin particular stood out most to Misty as she stared at the picture of herself. Her smile. Her perfect set of white teeth were flashing brilliantly into a wide grin which displayed that at that particular moment in time, she had been in complete happiness.

She flipped over the photograph, hoping that Ash had scribbled on a caption so she had an idea of where and when it was from. To her luck, he had. Misty's eyes scanned the several words that had been written.

Misty.  Summer, 2000.

_2000, _Misty thought. She had been around nineteen to twenty years old when the picture had been taken. That had been about a year before she had run into Rudy again.

She flipped over the photograph, studying herself once more. The girl in the picture suddenly seemed like a completely different person to Misty. She was younger with fewer responsibilities. She had just moved back to Cerulean with her friends and was spending as much time with them as well as her sisters. She didn't have any stupid boyfriend to take up her time or have to worry about what spending the rest of her life would be like. The picture-Misty was happier, happier that the real Misty had seen herself in God-knew how long. And she knew why. Because that girl was with Ash 24/7 and not Rudy.

She heard the doorknob turning and immediately forgot about the picture, dropping it back to its position in the drawer. She jumped up and ran to the door, praying that she would see Ash walking through its threshold, with a very good explanation for all of this.

Instead she nearly collided with Brock and Tracey, who both jumped back in surprise at her presence.

"Misty?" Tracey asked confusedly as soon as he opened the door and saw her there. "What are you...?"

"Where's Ash?" she immediately demanded.

"What? Misty..."

"Where's Ash?" she asked again, this time her voice more urgent that commanding. She noticed Brock and Tracey exchange wary glances and was beginning to feel desperate. "What happened? Where did he go?" she asked, now beginning to sound desperate. 

Brock moved from the doorway to stand in front of Misty who was now on the verge of tears. He put his hands in his pockets and shifted from foot to foot, uncomfortable. "He's gone, Myst."

"Gone? What do you mean, _gone_?"

"He already left; he's at the train station."  
  
"What?! Already?! And didn't you stop him?" Misty cried.

"We tried to Misty, we really did," Tracey told her desperately. "But..." he trailed off and looked over at Brock for some help.

"Myst, he told us what happened last night and he was pretty shook up about it," Brock informed her. "Maybe it would be good for him to get away from everything for a while." Seeing the hope in Misty's eyes at his last word which indicated that Ash's absence might not be permanent, Brock hurried his next words.  "But Misty, seriously, he says he's not coming back. He wants you to be able to go on with your life." 

"He _is_ my life!" She noticed a pile of boxes in the corner of living room, labels on each one of them. "What's all this?" She pointed to the boxes.

"That's his stuff he left here," Tracey explained. "He just took his clothes and had the movers take what little furniture they could with them on such short notice. When he gets a place out there, we're going to ship all of this to him."

"This is ridiculous," Misty exclaimed. "He can't leave!"

"I'm sorry, Misty, but what do you want us to do?!" Brock exclaimed, beginning to grow exasperated.  
  
She self-consciously ran her hand through her locks and looked back up toward them. "What time does his train leave?"  
  
"Um..." Tracey muttered while looking at his watch. "12:30."  
  
Misty glanced over at the clock whose hands read 12:14. "Shit," she cursed under her breath before running out the door.  
--

_I'm lost in a crowd_

_Tryin' to find my way_

_But the rain keeps fallin' down_

_Doesn't matter anyway_

_Catch me if you can_

_I've gotta make a getaway  
 _

"All aboard! All aboard!" the conductor yelled out as he walked back and forth in front of the train that would be leaving in a matter of minutes.  
  
Ash sighed to himself and gathered his bags of luggage in his arms as he made his way over to the train. _Well, I guess this is it_, he thought to himself longingly. He still was unsure if he was making the right decision by leaving. It seemed as if he was just running away from his problems, leaving it all behind and never even dealing with the situation at hand. But then again what did he have to deal with?  
  
He had lost everything. Even during Misty and Rudy's engagement, he still had her friendship; she was still the person he went to with every problem and every fear and vice versa. But now all of that was gone. Despite the fact that he could not be with Misty, she was a part of his life, a very big and cherished part of his life that he would be devastated not to have. And now he didn't. Because he had opened his mouth and in a feeble attempt to protect her, he had let her walk out of his life.  
  
Ash couldn't stay in Cerulean; he couldn't live in an area where she was mere miles away from him along with her husband to be. He could not survive without her friendship and compassion; that alone would kill him. He needed to get away from her, from everything; it all just hurt too much to be in the place where his world had fallen apart. He had to be far from it all, he needed to start a new life somewhere else which would hopefully even compare the slightest bit to all he had lost.  
  
With one last longing sigh, he readjusted the luggage in his hands and prepared to get onto the train to start all over again. But just as he was about to board, Ash stopped in his tracks at the sound of an all-too-familiar voice calling his name almost louder than the busy bustling of the train station.  
  
"Ash!" Misty cried, while hurrying toward him. "Ash wait!"  
  
He simply stood there and watched as she approached, her breath right away becoming rampant the minute she reached him and her jogging ceased to a halt.  
  
"Misty?" Ash inquired, confused by her presence. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"I... came... to... stop... you... from... leaving..." she managed to get out between sharp gasps of air. Ash noticed her discomfort and reached into a pocket of his suitcase and handed her a bottle of water that happened to so conveniently be there, she gulped it down thankfully. "I came to stop you from leaving," she repeated once her breathing rate had turned back to normal.  
  
Ash glanced at her warily before asking her the obvious question. "Why?"  
  
"Well, let me start by saying that I'm so sorry I ever doubted you," she stated bluntly. "You were right... Rudy was cheating on me all along."  
  
A wave of guilt washed over Ash at her piece of information and his more arrogant side had to resist the urge to blurt out 'I told you so.' However, Misty did not seem very upset as someone who had just discovered what she had. In fact she seemed almost unaffected by it all but that did not stop him from displaying a sympathetic expression toward her.  
  
"Oh, Myst," he sighed. "I didn't want to be right."  
  
"I know," she immediately reassured him. "But you were, and it was a good thing I found out sooner rather than later. I can't thank you enough telling me before we were married."  
  
Ash stared at her slightly quizzically, confused by why she was thanking him. "Um, you're welcome I guess?" he said unsurely. "But are you sure you're okay?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine," Misty answered honestly, letting a snicker of disbelief escape her lips. "I'm actually surprised by the fact that I'm not curled up in pajamas, eating cookie-dough out of the package while crying over 'Sleepless in Seattle' at the moment."  
  
Ash smiled at the reference she made although not once had it ever applied to Misty. He had he ever seen her fall to pieces over a guy and that he was truly grateful for.  
  
"You know," she continued, disturbing him from his thoughts. "It's weird. I always thought that if something like this ever happened to be I'd be devastated... but I haven't even shed one tear over him."  She shrugged, laughing slightly. "Then again, it's no use crying over something you never had to begin with."  
  
A moment of silence began to exist between them as they each became lost in their own thoughts but contempt with the fixated gaze they both held. The quietness was eventually broken by Misty who took a deep breath, mustering up every once of courage as she took a step closer toward Ash.  
  
"You, however... are worth crying over," she told him slowly. "Because you are someone who as always belonged to me and I cannot stand the idea of losing you for even a minute. I could care less about Rudy and whatever he does with the rest of his pathetic life, but I still will always be grateful to him because it was he who made me realize... that I'm in love with a guy who's a million times better than he'll ever be." Misty looked up toward him shyly, her aqua orbs an even more apparent shade due to her turquoise shirt as she fiddled with one of the buttons on her denim jacket.  
  
"Do you know who that is?" she asked tenderly.  
  
"I-I think that I do, but I've been really wrong about a lot of things lately so..." Ash's nervous ramblings were cut off as Misty brought her lips to his. All thoughts and logic thinking escaped from his mind and his brain just seemed to turn into mush at the feeling of her soft mouth against his own and her delicate arms wrapped around the back of his neck. Ash was able to return the kiss through his shock for a moment before Misty broke apart from him, eyeing him impishly.  
  
"Do you know now?" she inquired playfully.  
  
He smiled as she moved closer to him. "I think I've got a vague idea."  
  
With those simple words of reassurance fourteen years of longing and frustration had been put to an end. All memories of other lovers coming between them and major fights they had was put behind them, because in that moment two people's biggest dreams had just come true.  
  
Ash brought his lips to Misty's and they were immediately lost in another kiss would be the beginning of many more to come. He dropped his luggage, not caring where they landed and wrapped his arms around her waist before bringing his fingers up to run them through her hair.  
  
"I love you," she breathed into his ear.

He then broke apart from her and stared deeply into her eyes. Both of their gazes were startlingly intense and Ash reached up to stroke her cheek lovingly before uttering the words they each so desperately wanted to hear spoken… and not in a friendly manner.   "I love you too," he murmured, cupping her face tenderly in his hands.  Tears filled Misty's eyes at the emotion in his voice and Ash leaned forward, resting his forehead against her own.  A sudden overwhelming feeling came over Ash and for the first time in years he felt he wasn't holding back from her, that he could finally speak the utter and complete truth.  "I've always loved you," he continued, feeling the need to let her know exactly everything he had felt behind the countless situations they had been through.  "So much," he went on, moving a lone strand of ginger hair out of her flawless face, "too much."  He swallowed the lump forming in his throat.  "These past few months have been hell for me, I-I couldn't take seeing you with Rudy, planning your future, knowing you'd be spending it with him and not me.  I was gonna kill him when he told me what he was doing to you.  And, oh God, last night when I told you and we fought..." Ash closed his eyes momentarily as the onslaught of unwanted memories ran through his mind, "I felt like dying, Myst, I went out and got so drunk…"

"Shh," Misty interrupted him from his rambling, bringing a finger over his lips.  "It's okay, I know.  Mel told me everything."

Ash's eyes widened.  _Melody!_  His mind screamed.  The only think he had been concentrating on all day was what had occurred between him and Misty the night before.  He had known he had went out and gotten drunk but he naturally assumed he just passed out in an overly-intoxicated stupor on his couch.  The bits and pieces of what he could remember came shooting back to him, Melody at his apartment, the stuff she had left there, crying to her about Misty…

"Oh my God," he blurted out and he immediately looked at Misty seriously.  "Myst, I swear nothing happened, she just came over to drop off some of my stuff…"

"Calm down," Misty laughed, resting a hand on his chest.  "I know that too, although, I immediately assumed the obvious when she answered your door in the dress she had been wearing the night before," she raised her eyebrows impishly.  "But the two us actually talked it out, and everything's okay now."

"Everything's more than okay," Ash told her meaningfully, leaning his head down once again.  
  
Their lips connected once again in another open display for all the love and passion they held for one another. A huge weight had been lifted off both of their shoulders and all the heartache and confusion each had to experience through all the years suddenly seemed worth it for they had finally gotten what they each desired.  
  
"Hey, buddy," the conductor spoke up, interrupting Ash and Misty. "Train's leavin' in thirty seconds... you gettin' on or what?" Ash stole a glance from the love of his life to the stranger. The answer to the question was quite simple.  
  
"Nope, I'm not going anywhere," he spoke simply while pulling Misty into a hug which she gladly accepted. He glanced down at her smiling face and stared deeply at her before speaking his next words. "I'm right where I belong."  
  
_As the sun goes down, wakin' up my dreams_

_And in my mind you're with me once again_

_Out of my heart, into your head_

_And inside my heart there's a place for you_

_And in my mind I'm with you once again_

_Out of my heart, into your head_

_Take a look at the sky_

_Feel the sunshine_

_In your heart_

_In your head_

_In your own time _

_As the sun goes down, wakin' up my dreams_

_And in my mind you're with me once again_

_Out of my heart, into your head_

_And inside my heart there's a place for you_

_And in my mind I'm with you once again_

_Out of my heart, into your head_

_Out of my heart, into your head_

_Out of my heart, into your head_

TBC

--

_A/N:_ _Aw, the happy couple's finally together.  Everything is good, only the epilogue left, thanks so much to everyone who has stuck around this far =)_

_Happy Valentines Day everyone!  May your day be filled with endless fluff ;)_

_Word of advice to all you people who don't believe in Friday the 13th, beware because it most certainly *does*!  I was never one to take superstitions seriously and yesterday was just a normal Friday without anything out of the ordinary.  That was until I was rummaging in my parent's liquor cabinet, preparing to once again succeed in swiping some alcohol,  when in the worst timing in the history of my life,  my mom and dad *walk in* in the house just as  I am pouring vodka into a water bottle.  Little to say they did not buy my excuse about looking for *toothpicks*.  Lucky for me, they actually thought the whole thing was *funny* and I had to sit there for an hour while my mom shot me weird looks and my dad told me stories of his supposedly wild teenage years.  Thankfully, they bought my explanation of being *curious* and believed me when I said it was the *first time* I ever did anything like this.  *sighs in relief* It's times like this where I thank God I have such gullible parents._

_So, that's my little Friday the 13th bad luck story.  I am hoping you never have to experience anything like what I did.  The song was Out of my Heart by BBMak, Epilogue will be up in about a week and then it's bye-bye to The Game of Love *sniffles* I'm really gonna miss this story but I can't get all emotional on you guys now, I'm saying *that* for the last big A/N, chock full of thank-you's and all that good stuff._

_Please review! =)_


	13. Epilogue

**Epilogue**_  
  
_

"_Love is like the wind, you can't see it but you can feel it_,"_ -Shane West, A Walk To Remember_

_--_

  
**_One month later...  
_**_  
Tell me  
Just what you want me to be  
One kiss  
And boom you're the only one for me  
So please tell me why  
 Don't you come around no more?  
Cause right now I'm crying  
Outside the door of your candy store_

**  
**_It just takes a little bit of this, a little bit of that  
It started with a kiss  
Now we're up to bat  
A little bit of laughs, a little bit of pain  
I'm telling you my babe  
It's all in the game of ..._

  
Misty stepped out of her car and walked up the driveway of her home through the pouring rain, groaning to herself in annoyance. She was cold and drenched, and as far as she knew, she was going home to an empty house. Lily was out doing God-knew-what and she no longer expected to see her fiancé waiting for her considering she did not have one anymore.  
  
She had not seen or heard from Rudy ever since she had caught him in the act just over four weeks ago and quite frankly she was glad. She cancelled the wedding preparations and returned her dress within a couple of day's work.  Her sister had suggested that she keep the gown and just book the wedding preparations for a later date in case she were to become engaged again. But Misty had bluntly stated that if and when she prepared her next wedding it would be with a different person and therefore she did not want the left over arrangements from Rudy for when she married the right guy... and she had more than a slight an idea of who the right guy was.  
  
Finally, she reached the relative warmth of her gym's lobby. She wished she had gone home to Ash, but as far as she knew, he was working late. She knew her boyfriend could make her feel warm even in a freezing blizzard. She looked at the mail and found only bills and junk letters, including one that proclaimed her credit card would be taken away if she did not pay the bills for the last three months.  
  
_Could this day get any better?_ she thought bitterly while dragging her feet up the stairway which led to her room.  
  
A disgruntled sigh escaped Misty's lips and she ran her hands through her damp locks, only wanting to crawl into bed and sleep for the rest of the day. When she opened the door, her annoyance suddenly turned into happiness at the sight before her. A touched smile formed on her face upon seeing Ash standing there in the center of the floor. Scented candles filled the room with an enticing smell and warm glow. It was the perfect romantic setting with two champagne glasses set on her dresser and a pile of rose petals spewed out over her bed, making it plainly obvious on what he intended to indulge with her for their first time together.  
  
"What's all of this?" she asked with a pleased smile while eyeing him quizzically. Ash returned the grin and moved over toward her while grabbing the two glasses of champagne off the dresser.  
  
"I thought you might need a little warming up after getting stuck outside," he informed her simply. "Champagne?" He handed her a glass and they clinked them together before each taking a sip.  
  
"You know..." Misty started after swallowing the bubbly liquid. "As sweet as you are, you are not very subtle when it comes to hinting sex," she stated bluntly and Ash bit his lip, slightly abashed as well as amused by her comment.  
  
"Well, at least you're quick to catch on to the obvious," he replied impishly and she stared at him with a loving expression.  
  
"I don't deserve you," she murmured tentatively. He set both of their glasses back down on the dresser before wrapping his strong arms around her waist and drawing her close to him.  
  
"I should say the same thing to you," he remarked in the same tone, pressing his forehead against hers. Misty eyes met his once more before they were indulged into a soft kiss, a heartfelt gesture of their open declaration of love.   
  
The two of them were slowly getting used to one another as a couple, trying their hardest to adapt to the gentle caresses and kisses that they would have never shared back when their feelings for the other one were locked in the confines of their own minds. But it wasn't hard, however. Although they had just started their relationship they already knew everything about one another and were very much in love. It wasn't how most new couples started out as, all nervous and barley knowing their partner.  But Ash and Misty both been preparing for this to happen for years and they were going to savor every minute of it.  
  
Their kiss became more intense and the two of them fell back onto the bed, oblivious to everything but one another. Their lips continued to connect in a heated fusion while each of their tongues explored the depths of one another's mouth. The fervent kissing and hands roaming was enough to silently alert each of them of where they were leading up to.  
  
Ash broke apart from her for a moment and stared deep into her eyes, a sense of seriousness within his own. "Are you sure about this?" he asked her, his pensive appearance and thoughtful expression showing that he truly needed her approval before taking the next step which would consummate their budding relationship.  
  
With barley a beat of hesitation, Misty reached up and cradled his face gently in her hands, confirming her answer toward him in the process. "More sure about anything I have ever been in my life," she told him softly causing a small grin to form on his face.  
  
She pulled him down once more, kissing him and un-tucking his shirt from his pants before drawing it over his head. Ash lay back against the pillows, tenderly running his hands up and down Misty's arms as she explored his chest. Slowly, each article of clothing was removed and discarded, spread around the room with enjoyment rather than haste.  They lay on the bed, intimately kissing and letting hands and lips discover new skin for a short period of time before their union began to complete. Their bodies moved together in perfect synchrony; molding into a display of unadulterated love. Proving together, that the most natural and instinctual act of love could be beautiful and essentially pleasing.  
  
A profound sigh escaped Misty's lips once it was all over. She felt Ash roll off from on top and plop down beside her, his body glistening in sweat and breathing rampantly just like she was. They simply lay there for a minute, recovering, before turning towards one another and sharing an identical smile of contentment. She rested her head on his bare chest, feeling his heart beating erratically under her ear before they both drifted off into a peaceful sleep.  
--

  
_Love is  
Whatever you make it to be  
Sunshine  
Instead of this cold lonely sea  
So please baby try  
And use me for what I'm good for  
It ain't saying goodbye  
It's knocking down the door of your candy store  
  
It just takes a little bit of this, a little bit of that  
It started with a kiss  
Now we're up to bat  
A little bit of laughs, a little bit of pain  
I'm telling you my babe  
It's all in the game of love  
It's all in this game of love_  
  
_You roll me  
Control me  
Console me  
Please hold me  
You guide me  
Divide me  
Into one  
  
So please tell me why  
Don't you come around no more?  
Cause right now I'm dying  
Outside the door of your loving store_  
_  
**One and a half years later...  
  
**_The spring day was beautiful with its mild temperature, the sun shining brightly overhead with rays of hope and love beating down onto the land. Flowers were in every direction, white and pink roses mingled the soft green grass where the rows of chairs were set up on. Smiles were plastered on the guest's faces, tears streaming down some of the more emotional people who knew the bride and groom better and were aware of all they had been through.**_  
_**_  
_Lily, Daisy, and Violet stood to the side all dressed in identical bridesmaid gowns. Brock, Tracey, and former rival, Gary, remained standing on the other side clad in the typical black tuxedos they were required to wear as groomsmen. Delia was seated in the front row, crying her eyes out next to Professor Oak. Daisy's five year old daughter, Chelsea held her empty basket in her hands, having all ready fulfilled her duty of flower girl, standing several feet away from her mother. Violet's four year old son, Jake, held out a pillow with two rings on it while the guests silently prayed that he did not drop either one of them.  
  
Various friends and acquaintances from the past sat amongst the rows of chairs set up on the outside area of the church. Each and every one of them eager and delighted to watch the joining of Ash and Misty in holy matrimony.  
_  
_Ash smiled down at Misty as she read her vows softly.  He had never seen her look more beautiful.  Her wedding dress was simple but elegant; it was a satin strapless gown that came down to the floor with flowers embodied on the trim.  Her hair was worn down and softly waved and her veil was pushed back so it no longer obscured her perfect face.   A single tear made its way down her porcelain cheek, and Ash reached over, wiping it away gingerly.  He couldn't believe he was marrying Misty. He never thought that she would allow him back into her life again, after the way they had fought that night. But from the instant he saw her return to him at the train station all of his prayers had been answered and he knew they were meant to be together, forever. He looked down at the rings, and thought about all of the times he'd dreamed of this moment. It was amazing how things had changed so much, and yet the love that he and Misty shared seemed to be untouched by time and distance.  
  
_But then again that was all a part of it,_ Ash thought after the final words of the ceremony had been spoken and their first kiss as a married couple had been shared. He smiled wistfully as he gazed down at his new wife's beaming face, taking her hand in his as they walked back down the aisle, ready to start the new journey they were about to embark upon as one.  His previous conclusion drifted back into his mind and he grinned again adding another part to his inward statement that summed up all him and Misty had been through.  _All a part of that confusing game called love.   
_  
_It just takes a little bit of this, a little bit of that  
It started with a kiss  
Now we're up to bat  
A little bit of laughs, a little bit of pain  
I'm telling you my babe  
It's all in the game of love  
It's all in this game of love  
It's all in the game of love  
Let's play the game of love  
  
Roll me  
Control me   
Please hold me  
I'm out here on my own_

**Fin.**

--

_A/N: Well, that's it.  Twelve whole chapters plus an epilogue and this is over. This last part did not take me as much work as this A/N did, wanted to have the perfect little closing for all of you people who have stuck around this whole time.  But I still hope this short little conclusion was up to everyone's expectations, I didn't want to make things too long and drawn out, just a short sweet ending to wrap everything up ;)   For all of you who've been wondering why exactly I chose this particular title, the song above should give you an answer.  The Game of Love by Santana feat. Michelle Branch._

_And now for the inevitable  thank yous… Thanks to; cultnirvana, Charizard, Maia's Pen, sleepingsnorlax, Ze Cookie, AmberMyst, Grocko, Anysia, Aoi Senshi, Etherelemental, Spiraea Kozak, Alimoe =OD, rainastar, thundermousepikachu, Kit Kat, Uranasu, KawaiiCherryBlossom-aka-BWF, and everyone else who took the time to review, I couldn't have done it without all of your support, thank you so much everyone ;)_

_*sighs* In a way I'm happy and sad to see this story go. I've had so much fun writing it that I'm disappointed I'll no longer be able to work on it.  On the other hand, however, I'm glad that it's finally over with and that I'll now have the time to pursue new ideas.  It may be a little while before I start posting again, basically I'll probably have some one shots up eventually while I work on a new multi-chapter.  All in all, I'm satisfied with the way this story came out and overwhelmed with the amount of feedback I have received._

_Again thank you to everybody.  Please keep a lookout to anything knew of mine and also feel free to e-mail or IM me any time you want if you have any fic questions or just simply want to chat._

_Bye-bye for now! =)_

_-Rae_


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